Daniel glanced out the window to check on the boys in the backyard. They’d been out there a while. He was not expecting to see his son Tucker making out with his ‘friend’, that boy Jon who had been new at his school this year. Daniel was also not expecting Jon to be grinding against Tucker in wet underwear. He drew the blinds back and stepped away from the window.
Daniel stood there, staring at the blinds trying to process this. “Well, I guess he inherited the gay half of his father’s bisexuality at least,” he muttered. He sat down at his desk. “Oh crap, I gave him the wrong birds and bees talk. He’s probably been looking up gods knows what on the internet…” Daniel rubbed his face with his hand.
He reached for his cell phone and found the right contact. “Daniel! Nice to hear your voice.” “Hey Nate. Likewise, your baritone is sexy as always, you doing phone sex yet?” Nate snorted. “Well my stocks are looking pretty bad, but not that desperate yet. Why, you looking to be in a scene?” Daniel scoffed. “Emma would kill me.” “Yeah she would. Well you didn’t call me to propose porn, so what’s up?” Daniel leaned back in the chair. “Sooo Tucker is currently making out with another boy in my backyard.” Nate bellowed out a laugh. “You sound so indignant.” “I didn’t need to see that. He’s practically humping that kid while they’re standing up in the sprinkler.” “Kid? How old is he?” “They’re both 17,” Daniel muttered. “Ah teenagers.” “Yes. Teenagers.” “And you’re calling me because…?” “I need someone to give him the different version of the birds n bees talk than the one I gave him.” Nate snickered. “Why me? You’ve been through the motions. We had a lot of fun in that hotel room in Cancun. Man, you were so hairy, I loved it. Sometimes I still wonder…” “Nathaniel, honestly! We were in our 20s. You can’t possibly still be horny for me now.” “Sweetheart, I’d fuck you in a second if you asked.” Daniel didn’t respond to that immediately. “Well. That’s some new information.” “Sorry, didn’t mean to make it weird. You gotta gray fox thing going on. Don’t think I didn’t notice. But I know you got Emma, and I had my time, so I’ll be a good little gay boy and back off.” “Thanks Nate, you were always a gentleman. I appreciate the confident boost at least. But seriously, I can’t give my son this talk. You need to do it. He needs a gay role model. Emma’s family is so… so…” “Straight.” “Eeyaah. And my family is so….uh….” “Crazy?” “Yeah.” Daniel sighed. “Please Nate. Teach my son before he goes off to college.” “I would be honored. I will give him the proper education a young queer boy needs. Well start with a banana and condom and go from there.” “Thank you Nate. I’ll give you some money if you need anything.”
They talked a bit about setting a time for Nate to come over, and then Daniel hung up. Perhaps out of morbid curiosity, Daniel peeked out the window again. The boys were now lying on top of each-other in the wet grass, Jon’s hips grinding down on Tuckers. Daniel quickly withdrew. “Fuck,” he muttered. His face felt warm. “I hate how much that Jon kid looks like Nate.”
Daniel walked over to the bookshelf and looked at a group photo taken at Cancun all those years ago. He picked it up and gazed at the tanned faces. “Man, Nate. It should have been you, but you know that right? I can’t let you fuck me again because it would be the end of my entire life. The sex would be great but not the damage it would cause. But you get a chance to teach Tucker he won’t be forced to pick one side of his sexuality just because he wants to start a family. That’s good enough isn’t it?” The Nate in the picture smiling back didn’t answer. Daniel put the photo back and returned not to his desk, but to bottle of whiskey he kept next to the coffee bar in his office. He took a swig and returned it to its home. The alcohol relaxed his muscles. Daniel exhaled and returned to his seat. He put on his headphones, went back to finish what he was working on. The boys needed their privacy. If Tucker had inherited his dad’s tendencies, he probably also inherited his habit of being loud.
____________________________ Captions are fictional.
Calipher wipes his sword on a piece of shirt long torn off from another victim of his weapon. “I really need to wash this…” He tucks it away into a pocket and sheaths his sword. He steps over the reeking body of the bandit, striding forward half a dozen steps until he’s in front of Edward. “Well, here we are. Me, saving your arse, and you needing to he rescued.” “Sorry,” Edward says with a restricted shrug. Only because of the gag, it comes out as “thorry”. Calipher sighs. “I am have half a mind to tie you to the pack horse like a war captive so I won’t lose you.” “It may help. Can you untie me please?” “Hmm. No.” Edward’s chin jerks up. “No?” “Actually, I’m going to untie your legs.” “Why my regs?” he asks. “You were supposed to fuck me this morning. Did you forget that? You said you were going for a walk to ‘check the perimeter’ of our camp last night and got yourself kidnapped. Took all night and half this morning to bloody find you cause I can’t track worth shit. I haven’t slept cause I was worried about you and now I’m cranky and horny.” Edward looks at the ground. “Thorry.” “Next time you decide to try and raid a bandit’s campsite, make sure he’s not nearby first ok Edward?” He nods sheepishly. “You stupid, pitiful, handsome man. You must exasperate your mother.” Calipher bends over and removes the gag around his mouth. “Oh thank god, thank you.” Edward works his jaw. “She often said that when I was a young lad.” The knight uses his sleeve to dry his companion’s chin and offers him a sip of wine. “Oh, yes wine. Praise the gods. Thank you.” “Mhm.” Calipher tosses the wine bladder aside once he’s had a drink. He drops to his knees and begins to untie Edward’s legs. “How am I going to fuck you tied to a tree?” Edward asks. Calipher pulls off his shoes. “With your dick.” “Well, well yes but-” He removes the metal greaves from the man’s shins and toss them to the side. “Hey careful with those, don’t dent them.” “That’s their whole purpose.” Edward doesn’t know what to say to that. The knight has undone the utility belt and leather faulds protecting Edward’s hips and he lets them drop. With a grunt of impatience, Calipher unbuttons his pants. “Lift your arse.” Edward digs his heels into his leaf litter and lifts his ass. Calipher pulls them clean off. “Ah it’s chilly out here” Edward remarks. “Don’t shrink up now.” “I can’t help it!” “I have to do everything, really.” Calipher tosses his gloves to the ground. He scoots forward and takes Edward into his hand and pulls on his shaft. It’s soft and stubby, trying to hide, but still warm. “Oh this is much better than being tortured by a bandit.” “Mhmm. There we go, getting nicely stiff. Look at you grow, god you always surprise me how you nearly double in size.” "You are really good at that,” Edward hisses. “Nice and hard for me now… yeah like that. God you are beautiful all tied up and erect. See, this is sort of how I expected to find you. I hoped I’d find the bandit on the verge of deflowering you and I’d get to have a very dramatic entrance.” “Sorry to disappoint you.” Calipher smiles. “Try harder next time.” Edward sticks his tongue out. “Hey hey put your hand back – why did you stop?” Calipher stands up and begins to remove his clothes below the waist. He removes his scabbard from his hip and arrows from his back. When Calipher pulls the waistband down, his cockhead catches on the edge of it, then springs up and makes an audible sound as it smacks against his pelvis. Edward gulps. He instinctively tries to reach for it but the ropes hold him fast to the tree. He whines in frustration. “Curse you seven times!” “Says the man tied to a tree,” Calipher teases. Edward whines. “Eight times!” “That will take you a while. Which pouch has the oil in it?” “Oh? The left one.” Calipher digs it out. It’s firm in the cooler temperatures, so he scoops some out and rubs it between this palms to soften it. He lubricates Edward’s cock, working it up and down his shaft. Edward lifts his hips against Calipher’s touches. He sighs. “Bless the gods.” Calipher decides its enough and wipes his hand on Edward’s pants. Edward doesn’t even notice. He’s fixated on Edward standing up and his cock bouncing right at eye level. He darts out his tongue. “You want that huh?” “It’s beading at the tip.” “Lick it off.” Edward parts his lips and flicks out his tongue to clean it. Calipher pushes inside of his mouth. “Oh wow.” Edward sucks on the head of it while Calipher rocks against his tongue for a little while. Edward can feel his cock reaching rock hard firmness and it’s making him feel warm and uncomfortable. His own muscles are sore from being in a fixed position tied to this tree and his butt is going numb, but having his nose buried in Calipher’s wild public hair is a fine distraction. “H-hey keep your tongue out of the slit or I’m going to cum.” Calipher runs his fingers through Edward’s hair. After a horridly short time, Calipher adds: “Ok I have to stop or I’m going to cum.” He withdraws his cock and Edward complains again. “Allow me to finish you at least?” He begs. Calipher smirks. “You may have that.” He drops to his knees, straddling Edward’s lap, pausing only to position Edward’s cock into place before slowly lowering himself down. At the breach, a joint cry from both men startles birds from trees. Edward digs his heels into the dirt again and pushes up. Calipher locks eyes with Edward. As he slowly sinks deeper and deeper he thinks how lovely his eyes are, such a warm brown flecked with gold. Edward furrows his brow, wondering what Calipher is thinking. Calipher closes his eyes and tilts his head back. After a painful epoch of time he takes the last inch with a strained keening noise. He rests, sitting on Edward’s lap, breathing purposely in slow deep breaths as he fights the urge to ride this man like a desperate whore instead of taking time to let his body adjust. Edward makes helpless whimpering noises; behind the tree he’s making fists with his hands.
“Are you ok?” Calipher opens his eyes. They’re dark and shiny, and his cheeks flushed. His raw gaze makes the breath hitch in Edward’s chest. “I’m very ok, Edward. Cause I’ve gotten what was promised to me, and I’m quite pleased about it.” “What would you have done if I was dead? Haunted my ghost for a fuck?” “For eternity.” “How faithful.” Calipher chuckles.”I’m going to move now. Move with me?” “I can’t, I’m tied to a tree,” Edward says dryly. Calipher laughs. “Again I’m doing all the work.” “Curse you nine times.” “Oh we’re almost to ten.” “God you’re as infuriating as you are beautiful.” Calipher begins to move as if ride on a saddle in slow motion. “You think I’m beautiful?” Edward blinks. “Yes, you stupid man. When you take your hair down at night and it spills across your cheek over your shoulders….” He shudders. “Oh you shot a little! God that is erotic, feeling you spill your wetness in me. Curses, I can’t wait any longer. I need the rest of it.” Calipher puts his hands on Edward’s shoulders and rides him as if in full cantor. He ignores his own cock, cause well, he promised. Edward thrusts up the best he can. Their cries mix, growing in volume. Calipher’s thighs begin to quiver and Edward is nearly in tears from frustration at not being able to touch him. It’s a worse punishment then being flogged! “Cal,” he pleads. Calipher’s muscles quiver as he tenses around Edward’s cock and draws him to the deepest depths of his body. “Oh sweet heavens!” Edward gasps. He throws his head back and bangs it on the tree. He barely feels the pain; the orgasm goes through him like a bolt of lightening. “Sweeeeet fucking heavens!” he shouts. His balls hitch up and shoots his load after load up Calipher’s perfect arse. He may be tied to this tree but Calipher cannot restrain his seed, and yet as if by some magic trick, he’s still managed to mark that man as his own. “Mine,” he growls. Calipher’s eyes widen. His face is fully pink and sweat shines on his brow. The spell breaks for Edward and he realizes what he’s said and gone red. What they have was supposed to be a casual relationship of convenience for this journey but… something has irrecoverably changed. A bridge perhaps crossed that cannot be found for the way back. Edward begins to soften. Calipher raises up to let him slide out and his warm seed spills over his cock. Edward gasps. “Ye gods, I gave you everything didn’t I?” “And more, it feels. It’s running down my thighs in torrents.” Calipher uses Edward’s shoulders again for support and stands up with weak legs. His cock is deep red and straining. Edward seems stunned he’s still hard. Had they not ejaculated together? “I promised you could finish me off, did I not?” Edward nods and licks his lips greedily, impressed by the man’s stamina. He parts his dry lips and Calipher thrusts in with unrestrained need. Edward pulls him in, greedy for his scent again, and sucks with all his strength. Calipher thrusts against his tongue with his head tossed back. He explodes with a yell Edward’s heard him use in battle. It’s a struggle to swallow it all and some spills down his chin. He rubs his tongue around the head of Calipher’s cock, making him swoon and reach for the tree to brace himself. “Curse all the gods, Edward! Sweet fucking heavens, your tongue is such a torment.”
Sensing he’s sensitive, Edward relinquishes control and allows Calipher to withdraw. He nuzzles his man at the base of the shaft, and washes his balls with his tongue. Calipher sucks air in through his teeth as the cool breeze alights on wet skin. “What a sensation that is!” “You like it?” “Yes it’s – it’s quite something.” Calipher leans against Edward’s face, face in the crook of his arm, catching his breath. “Well – well, that-” he swallows. “Well I can safely say, you have paid your debt to me.” Edward looks up at him. “I need a receipt.” Calipher peers down at him through his crooked arm. “Could you even read it or should I just draw some crude pictures on it?” ”I’ll lie and say I’m fully illiterate just for the pictures.” Calipher chuffs through his nose. ”Oh, I am spent.” “I feel completely numb, Cal. Both in that lovely tingly way when your body is feeling right proud of itself for certainly having completed a successful breeding despite its sheer ignorance of where that load went, and also because I can’t feel my arms. Can you please untie me?”
Calipher snorts. “Yes.” He pulls the dagger out of his discarded boot, walks around the tree, and cuts his lover free. Edgar groans in relief and stretches his sore arms. “Ah there, now the blood’s returning.to my finger tips. All of it left to go to my cock.” “Well you did deliver spectacularly.” Calipher also utilizes his dagger to remove some moss from a rock and uses it to clean up the cum streaking down his thighs. He yanks the yellow cloth off Edward’s belt that identifies him as a skilled tracker for hire and uses it to clean the both of them. “You know, it took me two years to earn that yellow flag.” Calipher looks at the cloth. “You silly bastard, you could have done it in far less time if you found me a white cloth and let me pee on it.” “Curse you ten times!” Edward throws a shoe at him while Calipher cackles. “Hey! Behave or I’ll tie you up again.” “Behave or I’ll tie you up.” Calipher raises an eyebrow. “Promise?” “Well I would if you hadn’t cut the rope…” “Oh yeah I did do that. Well, hopefully if we make it to town tonight – which we would have, without delays.” Edward rolls his eyes. “It was a remarkable delay though.” Calipher folds his arms. “Actually, I will agree with you and concede my point. But if we can make it to town, we could buy rope. We should at least splurge for the bath house and a room in it. I have a feeling we’re both going to want to sleep on a padded mattress tonight.” Edward groans at the thought. “A real bath.” He makes a noise of fake enlightenment. “Ah, I just realized – we’ll have to see each other naked. I’m not sure I can handle that, you see. I’ll be so embarrassed. I’m just a farm lad who gets so nervous around big strapping knights with big muscles and huge swinging pen – hey you can’t throw my own shoe back at me!” “I can and I did! At least it wasn’t a greave!” “Yes that would hurt-” Edward’s stomach interrupts them. “Ye gods, I’ve spent it all. We still have provisions back at camp?” “We do but – you’re forgetting something.” “What?” Edward gets to feet with some difficulty. Calipher points to the dead bandit on the edge of the woods. “We get to raid his campsite now for snacks.” Edward considers the unwashed man, the black edges to his nails, the dirt caked into his clothes “I am suspicious of his snacks.” “Maybe we can take his coins to buy better snacks?” Edward points a finger at Calipher. “See, that, that is why I travel with you.” Calipher reaches out to pinch Edward’s cock. “No other reason?” Edward swats his hand away. “Ha! Stopped you. And Nope. None. Zero. No reason at all why I travel with you. Nothing to do with my cock anyhow.” Calipher throws his woolen sock at him and sticks out his tongue.
Edward sticks his tongue back. He watches Calipher dress and his face softens. “Cal?” “Yes Edward?” “Thank you for rescuing me. I had a very dark and lonely night out here, near beside myself at the thought of leaving this Earth without telling you first.” Calipher glances up at him as he secures his sword belt around his waist. “You’re my tracker. If you left, I’d have to follow you.”
Edward is left so breathless and flustered by this comment, he puts his trousers on backwards and falls over in the process, putting a dent in his greave. “Oh curse you eleven times.”
Irving returned from court to his office exhausted and bedraggled. The simple case had gone out of hand; he’d eaten fast food standing up on the court house steps. Irving hadn’t even had a moment to enjoy Valentines Day with his husband this morning. Just a kiss, an intimate hug. Eric had texted Irving asking if he could bring him tea for a tea break at the office, which Irving had jumped at – but of course, the case had dragged on, and Irving missed the window when Eric was available for lunch hour. Typing every “I’m sorry” hurt.
Irving sighed as the elevator doors opened. He was supposed to make dinner for them at home tonight, and he wondered how on Earth he was going to find he energy to cook the lamb in the fridge. Irving dragged himself past the office lobby, and said a ‘hello’ to the secretary as he walked passed. “Oh, Mr. Macintosh!” Irving stopped and his briefcase banged against his leg. “Yes, Darla?” She smiled and giggled. “You had a visitor.” “I did?” “You did. In your office.” “Was it Eric?” She just smiled. “You’ll see.”
Irving chewed his lower lip. “What was he up to?” He strolled to his office with a pep to his step. Irving opened the door and froze in place, air in his lungs. There was a trio of balloons tied to the back of his chair; a white one, a pink one, and a red heart one. Eric had repotted his cactus into a bold red and white ceramic pot, a vast upgrade from the small plastic brown one held together with tape after being pushed off the desk by slipping files. Then he saw the treats. The top of his three foot book case had been cleared of art books and an award from law school, and covered by a white place mat from their dining room.
Eric had left a tray – his grandmother’s tray – dotted with cream puffs decorated with lovely red hearts. Next to it was a pot of tea wrapped in a yarn warmer. Eric leaned his briefcase against the desk and wandered over to inspect the display further. There was a card in front of the tea pot. Eric opened it. “Happy Valentines Day. Love you, and don’t feel bad about being busy. It just an opportunity to surprise you. With all my love – Eric. PS: Remember that tea we had in Paris? Found it! Also, share the puffs, I held mine back <3.”
Irving took the card to his desk. He sat down in the chair, making the balloons sway. Irving pulled the heart one down to hold it; then covered his eyes with his hands and wept. The fatigue and stress melted away. After a few hiccups, Irving released the balloon and blew his nose. He rushed to the bathroom to wash his hands and cool his face. He called Eric from the bathroom, professed his love, and pushed away tears again. Once he hung up, he had to refresh again. Work forgotten, Irving rushed back to his office for his afternoon tea break. He poured himself a cup of tea, plucked up a cream puff, and turned his chair to the window to watch the birds soar over the river. His thoughts drifted to the dinner he would be preparing in a few hours. Did they have candles? He was sure they did somewhere.
_______________________________ Captions are fictional.
Joseph made a soft groan as he awoke. The pillow was really hard. He lifted his head to see he’d fallen asleep on Dominic’s shoulder. Joseph drank in the luxury of seeing shirtless Dominic first thing in the morning. Joseph ran his palm up Dominic’s sternum. Joseph shifted and was reminded he was going to be a little sore. Joseph liked how it felt to know he wasn’t a virgin anymore. He was no longer a boy, but a man. They’d rented a hotel room last night – by themselves! – using Dominic’s credit card. They ate out at nice Italian restaurant. No one gave them a second look holding hands together. Joseph carefully turned and looked over his shoulder. The sun-washed city was spread out into the infinite horizon in the long, narrow gap between the open drape panels. Joseph decided he liked New York City a lot. He liked the idea of making it part of his future. A man in front of him, the city behind him. Couldn’t be a more perfect way to start every day.
Joseph resumed cuddling Dominic’s body. Dominic cracked an eye. “Hey,” he croaked. “Mornin.” “Sleep well?” “Mmhm. You?” “Amazing,” Dominic exhaled.
After a moment, Dominic spoke again. “Did we really have sex last night? Or did I dream it?” “I hope it wasn’t a dream. I tried to get up. Doesn’t feel like it was a dream.” “You can feel it? Did I hurt you?” “No… it feels nice. Reminds me it’s real.” Joseph squeezed Dominic’s torso. Dominic turned his head toward Joseph and kissed his forehead. “I’ll remember how your body felt for the rest of my life. It was just amazing. Thank you for uh, doing that. With me, I mean.” Joseph chuffed. “You’re welcome? I mean, I wouldn’t have wanted it to be anyone else.”
Dominic smiled. “I hate that we have to check out in a couple hours and go home.” “Well, just because we check out doesn’t mean we don’t have to go home. We still gotta get bagels for breakfast. And we have the whole day ahead of us. The city is ours.” “Why Joseph, I think you are right. Can we lay here a little while longer though? This is nice.” “This is nice,” Joseph agreed. “And I’m quite comfy.” Dominic nuzzled him. “Good. Just a while longer.” “Then can we shower together?” “Uhh yeah. I like that idea a lot.”
Marshal was starving when he came home. It was almost 2 am at this point and he really wanted to sleep, but his grumbling stomach came first. He winced in discomfort as he bent over to untie his work boots. The stage load-out for that show had been a bitch. Too much truss. Too many over-sized cases. Why did a band playing a venue that size need so many goddamn risers anyway? Gross. Marshal knew his whole body was gonna ache tomorrow. It was a good ache, considering he hadn’t worked a real concert in 18 months due to the Covid-related shut downs, but it was going to take time to get used to the physical labor again.
Marshal shuffled into the kitchen and set his bag on the bar counter. The light over the stove had been left on. Marshal pulled a glass out of the cabinet, and when he went to open the fridge he noticed the note on the handle: Hey love, figured you’d be hungry. I made some cold ice tea for you, and you have a choice of ramen, a sandwich, or a frozen meal. Sleep well <3 J
“Awwww,” Marshal cooed. He smiled and put the note in his pocket. Inside he fridge he found a picture-perfect ham sandwich saran-wrapped on a plate. Marshal took it out. He turned back to the fridge to pour himself a glass of iced tea. It was only when he went to put the iced tea back in, did he realize something was slightly off. He stared at the fridge and waited for his sleep deprived brain to catch up.
The bento box wasn’t there. Jaime always put his lunch in this special tupperware he used and it always sat in the upper left hand corner of the fridge. Why had he not packed a lunch? Marshal furrowed his brow. Whatever the reason, he decided to return the favor by packing Jaime lunch.
His plans were thwarted upon opening the fridge drawer containing sandwich stuff. It was empty besides a half opened package of sliced cheese. They’d forgotten to get more deli meat when shopping yesterday. Marshal groaned. “Ah crap,” he muttered. He glanced at the sandwich on the counter and had a revelation. Jaime had used the last of the ham for him. The realization made Marshal’s heart feel warm and full. Such a sweet man, his Jaime.
Even though Marshal’s body was begging for rest, he had to set this right. Jaime was really trying to eat out less so he could lose weight, and Marshal didn’t want him to break the streak at work. So Marshal popped a frozen meal into the microwave and set out to make Jaime his lunch. He found the bento box thing in the drying rack of the dishwasher. In it went the perfect sandwich, some grapes, and some of that bean salad they’d taken home from their friends pool party. He also whipped out the cutting board to chop up some celery sticks which he dumped into another little container, along with peanut butter. The bento box went into the fridge, where it belonged, with the celery container on top. Marshal also positioned its carrier bag on the counter and added some pretzels and two cookies from the jar.
The only thing missing now was a note. Marshal stirred up the half-defrosted frozen meal and shoved it back into the microwave as he thought about what to write for a moment. His eyelids were struggling to stay open and poetry wasn’t his strong suit. So, Marshall simply wrote: I love you, you can hit your weight goal for sure <3 -M, and stuck it to the carrier bag.
Marshal shoveled the warm meal into his face, drank the whole glass of iced tea in one go, and stumbled to bed. The shower would have to come tomorrow. He was crashing. Marshal slid between the sheets and adhered himself to Jaime’s back. Jaime made a soft noise Marshal nuzzled the back of his neck and fell asleep in less than a minute.
When Marshal awoke the next morning, he was alone in bed. It was inevitable, but a bit lonely. His emotions were buoyed by a new note waiting for him the kitchen: Oh my god, you’re so sweet, I actually kind of cried a little. This lunch looks amazing. Thank you so much. Love you so much too. Can’t wait until I get off to work tonight and I can see you. Let’s fuck <3″
Marshal laughed. Jaime had a way of making the most vulgar thoughts sounds adorable. And Jaime was not a shy man. Jaime liked his sex. Marshal was pretty smug that he was the one Jaime picked to receive it. Marshal decided a run to the grocery store was going to be a priority today. He made a mental note to make sure they had enough lube and condoms before he went out. Lord knows they didn’t want to open that drawer and find it empty tonight! Not like they could use sliced cheese instead!
There was a noticeable absence of people on the street, and Hatsuo thought his geta sandals sounded much louder than normal. He was returning from sending his father off to sea. The sun was up, but the sky was still grey. The sharp chill in the night air was holding out until late morning now, and it was undeniable that winter was on its way. It had rained over night too. Hatsuo suspected everyone was still in bed, huddled in their warm futons. Once Hatsuo was awake he wanted to be out of bed at once. There were things to do. Fish to catch. A house to run. He’d inherited it from his father.
Hatsuo turned the corner onto a narrower alley and slowed. He planted his feet firmly so the geta echo’ed between the wooden houses huddled over the cobblestones. His ears perked up at the sound of a wooden door sliding. “Hatsuo-san, ohayo gozaimasu.” Hatsuo felt his heart speed up. “Ohayo gozaimasu, Ryo.” For such a beautiful man, Ryo was such a mess in the morning. His hair was barely combed, and barely contained in a messy dark knot. Eyelids were still heavy and his slim face had an impression of the fabric on one side. “It’s chilly this morning. Please come try this tea that’s freshly roasted.” Ryo yawned. Hatsuo tried not to blush. Ryo had such a sultry voice and it gave him goosebumps. “I’d like tea, thank you.”
Ryo pushed the sliding bamboo door open and Hatsuo went inside. Ryo’s family ran this tea house and he lived in the small apartment on top of it. The rest of his family lived closer to their warehouse down near their port. Hatsuo removed his wooden shoes.
Hatsuo sat at a table of the closed restaurant and waited for Ryo to bring out two cups and the teapot. They sipped bancha together and talked about the winter, about the tea crop this year, about the currents that brought fish, and reports of snow further north already. The tea worked its way down Hatsuo’s limbs, flushing out the cold.
When the pot was empty, Hatsuo set his cup down. “Thank you very much.” “It’s my pleasure.” Ryo bowed his head but made no motion to clear the table. Instead he looked at Hatsuo and rubbed the back of his neck. They were both listening. Someone was sweeping in the distance. But everyone was staying in bed a little longer today. “Hatsuo-san?” “Hm?” Hatsuo replied. “Do you have a little extra time this morning?” “I do.” Hatsou tucked a stray piece of hair behind his ear. Ryo looked please. He stood up and held open the curtain that lead to the staircase to the upper apartment. “After you.” Hatsuo bit his lip to try and his smile. He bowed his head. “Thank you.” He left the restaurant and went up the steep stairs. Ryo’s heavy footsteps were right behind his.
Ryo reached for the sash holding Hatsuo’s yukata robe in place before they were at the top. Once Hatsuo reached the landing, he turned and helped him undo it. The yukata fell to the floor. Ryo cupped Hatsuo’s cheek and kissed warm lips. Ryo made a soft noise of longing. “You’re the only reason to get out of bed this morning….” Hatsuo wiggled his hands into Ryo’s robe and stole another kiss. “You mean, get back into bed?” Ryo chuckled. “That’s more accurate to say isn’t it?” He sat on the futon and pulled Hatuso on top of him. Hatsuo helped Ryo out of his clothes. It was suddenly too warm to wear them.
I dress and watch him. He’s stretching, enjoying the sun on his skin. We’re a little late this morning. We had some quick sex before a shower. He’s glowing and energetic. Ready to face his work – letting the chickens out, gathering eggs, feeding the horse, and getting the newspaper. He’ll make breakfast. I’ll make the bed, put in laundry, make tea, and we’ll eat together. Then I’ll head into my office in the backyard to work, he’ll go into his ceramics studio, and we’ll regroup for a game of badminton before lunch.
He finishes his stretches and moves to head out. “Reggie?” I say, catching him mid-step. “Yessir?” “Are you happy here? I mean, do you miss the city at all? Your previous lifestyle?” Reginald raises an eyebrow. “Where did that come from?” “Cause like you make me so happy I feel sick sometimes, and I just can’t help but feel a bit guilty my happiness may come at expense of your own.” Reginald smiles. “It doesn’t matter where I am as long as I’m with you, Sir.” A lump forms in my throat. “But you have to miss things a little bit…” Reggie thinks. “I miss take out. And I miss the convenience of popping to the store for things. And the clubs. But then I remember I have my own horse, and I can walk around naked without the neighbors complaining, and I’m eating veg from my garden. I can always go to the clubs on a city visit, like we did last month-” he points at me. I nod. “But at the end, I like coming home here. To our home.” “Ah. Well that’s good.” I manage to choke that out around the growing lump. “Just good?” Reginald teases me. “Very good. Great – it’s, it’s great. Better than uh, great.” Reginald giggles. He walks back up to give me a hug. I sigh in contentment as his bare body presses against mine. I embrace him back tight. He’s even warmer than this morning. “I love you,” Reggie says. “I love you too.” I reply He squeezes my arm and flashes a little smile. “Better not keep the chickens waiting or they will be cross if they’re not let out.” I wave him off. He kisses the corner of my mouth and floats off. I sigh. I stare at the void he left in the room with wistfulness.
“God, there you are. What are you doing up …wait, how did you get up there?” “I’m talented,” Kennedy says. “Bunch of people are looking for you.” “Yet you found me. You knew where to find me. You know me better than anyone.” I run my fingers over my buzzcut. “Bad fight this time?” “Yeah,” he says softly. “You’ve been crying.” “Shut up.” Kennedy says, but there is no sharpness to it. He sounds tired. “Come on down,” I say. “Come back to my room. My mom will make you tea.” Kennedy glances at the sunset. “I feel like jumping off of this. Just so hard right now.” “What? No. Nooo. NO no no you are not committing suicide. This whole thing with your dad is dumb and by the time you’re 25 this bullshit from when you’re 18 will be a distant memory. You’ll be looking to your life ahead in the career you want, not what you dad wants. Not looking behind. You’ll find a nice boy to marry, have a nice life. Christ, you’ll be out of this dump at least.” Kennedy sighed. “It is a dump. Even if the sunset is nice.” I wait. He doesn’t move. “If you aren’t coming down, I’m coming up.” “…What?” I walk over the pole and kick off my shoes. “What are you doing?” “I’m gonna walk up. Like a coconut picker.” Kennedy laughs. “I gotta see this.” I grab the pole and then jump up to grab the pole with both feet. But my feet are sweaty from my shoes and the pole is slick. My upper body strength wasn’t the best, and I finally had to drop to the ground. I’m happy to hear Kennedy giggling. I glance up at him. “How did you get up there?” “I pulled myself up from the net.” “Must be nice to be tall,” I said matter-of-factly. He grins. “It is. The view is nice.”
I hold out my hand. “Come on down, ok? Let’s go home. My mom will feed you and make tea.” “Why can’t my parents be like yours?” Kennedy asks me. “I don’t know…but I’m kinda glad.” “Glad?” “Yeah, cause you come over to our house and spend time with me when you fight,” I grumble. “I like hanging out in my room with you, playing Mario. When your parents don’t fight you hide in your room avoiding them and play by yourself.” Kennedy brushes tears away. “Fuck.” I give him a moment. Kennedy sniffles. “Tea sounds good now actually.” Kennedy climbs down until he’s hanging off the part of the pole parallel to the ground. He lets himself hang for a moment and drops. “Good dismount.” I say. “Thanks.” I give him a hug and Kennedy crushes me in his embrace. I pat him on the back and I guide him in the directions of our home with my arm around him. I text another friend I found him, and I know this friend will let everyone know I’m taking Kennedy home. We hold hands the whole way.
My mom fusses over Kennedy. She offers him a miscellaneous assort of things – miso and senbei crackers and onigiri and tea. She offers him a bath. Kennedy is bowled over by the attention. He tries to remember the Japanese I taught him. We sip tea and nibble on rice crackers as my mom fusses around and forms rice around salmon left over from dinner. “Ah, arigatou,” Kennedy stammers as he is given two giant onigiri. I try not to laugh at how big my mom packed them. “You want bath? I draw bath.” She’s already shuffling off. Kennedy looks at me. “I love your mom.” I smile. “She’s awesome.” “Can you teach me more Japanese? While we play Mario?” “Yeah, I can. Let’s take a bath first ok?” Kennedy exhales and leans back. “A soak sounds awesome.” He sips his tea. “Man. I can’t believe I was going to commit suicide. Seems so dumb now.”
I squeeze his shoulder. “You hit the bottom and bounced. I’m glad you’re here.” Kennedy smiles. “Me too.” He picks up a rice ball. “What’s the word you say when eating again?” “Itadakimasu.” “Ita-da-kima-su.” Kennedy bites into a rice ball. “God this is good!”
I watch this skinny teenage boy with red eyes gobble up the onigiri with fresh energy. I decide at that moment he’s spending the rest of our senior year with us. This way, I can keep Kennedy safe. Maybe at some point I’ll beat him at Mario too.
“Honestly, some part of me thinks I’m just running from my problems. But I only have problems when I’m home – I didn’t finish university, everyone expects me to date girls, and my parents are just disappointed in me I guess cause I never moved out. I only joined the Navy because I didn’t know what else to do. I don’t have any other skills besides working on a boat. As long as I’m in the Navy, I don’t have any problems.” “You like Navy?” the merman asked. Jack couldn’t pronounce his name properly, as he couldn’t use sonar. “I do.” “Lots of men. See them on beaches in same hat.” Jack giggled. “There are.” “Are you good at Navy?” “Yes. I may be promoted soon.” “Promoted is…good?” The merman asked. “Yes. More work, more money.” “Then no problem. Stay on water, no problem. Stay on lands, problems. Stay on water. Water always best.” Jack gazed up at his pretty blue eyes. “You make it seem so simple.” He furrowed his brow. “Is simple.” Jack chuckled. “Is your life simple?” The merman glanced out over the water. “Before, simple. No boats. Fish. Now boats, loud boats. Some boats take many many fish. But we still happy. But also complicated.” “What’s complicated?” Jack asked. “Men drive boats. But I like you.” “Oh. That is complicated. I like you too.” Jack reached up and cupped his cheek. The merman nuzzled it. Jack scratched his beard and the merman tilted his head like a puppy. “Six days, boat go?” The merman asked. “Five,” Jack said with a sigh. The merman pouted. “Stay?” Jack sighed. “Can’t. Navy.” “When come back?” “I don’t know. The merman thought. “You go toward sun set or sun rise?” “What?” Jack blinked. It took him a moment to realize the merman was asking if he was headed east or west. “Sun set.” The merman brightened. “I go with.” “What? Really? But…it’s so far from your beach.” “We go west. For spawning. Not now. In days. But early ok.” Jack smiled. “I would like that. I’d miss you.” “Miss you too. You see, yes? Land, problems. Water, no problems.” Jack reached for his hand. “Yes. I see.” They intertwined their fingers together and watched the clouds move over the sea.
“Who was that?” Jin asks as I walk back up to the pool deck. I chuckle and toss the disposable phone onto my chair. “You know who it was.” “Are you serious? We told them we’re done.” “Apparently their new guy couldn’t get the goods through customs. Got seized at the airport.” I can’t help but chuckle. Jim smirks. “Now they realize how good they had it.” “Apparently not.” I walk down the pool steps. “I kept refusing, he kept trying to offer more and more money. That’s annoying as fuck, because if they could pay us more why didn’t they in the first place. But really it just drives home that they never respected us at all. That annoys me more.” “Men like that don’t get that they need professionals to do this job well, and they never ever think of us more than just mules. They don’t get that there’s talent into it.” “That is rude.” Jin agrees. He hooks his fingers in my Speedo. “They never appreciated us. Or bothered to look beyond skin deep.” He peers into my swim trunks. “To see all your beautiful assets and talents.” I smile and kiss him. “I still don’t think they quite understand we’re a couple either. They called you my ‘buddy’.” That makes Jin laugh and he covers his mouth with the back of his hand. “Dense fuckers!” “Man, I still love the way you laugh. Your Japanese-ness really comes out. It’s adorable.” “Oh come on, no it’s not.” “It is too.” I kiss him again, and Jin’s lips linger on mine. “It’s really hard to argue with you when you’re kissing me.” I smile. “Talents.” I lean back into the water and push off my feet so I’m floating into the deeper end. A thought hits me and I bring myself upright. “Hey Jin?” “Hm?” “I didn’t give them that cell number they called us on.” “Are you fucking serious?” “Yeah.” I stand up. “If we’re gonna start a family, we need to make sure they can’t find us. Kids are leverage. We need to really disconnect.” Jin gets quiet. “It was probably Raul. We’re going to need to get a new phone guy.” “Raul probably knows him. No, we need to totally disconnect.” “You think we need new IDs?” I groan. “I don’t want to do that again.” “We can’t be changing them once we start the adoption process.” “Yeah I know.” I walk to the steps and out of the pool until I find where I left the phone. I toss it into the pool. Jin and I watch it sink. “That was a good idea,” he says. I sigh and get back into the pool. “Can we talk about IDs later? It’s so warm out here. Can we swim and make out and sunbathe naked, and THEN talk about IDs over a nice refreshing dinner of fruit and fresh fish as the sun sets?” “You always have the best idea. Especially that bit about making out. I hate when guys think any sign of affection meant fucking. There’s just something so pure and nice about kissing boys.” “Ah, yes, I love kissing boys too. Especially Japanese ones who have the most adorable laugh.” Jin blushes a little. “If you want to be kissed, you need to get over here before I change my mind.” I take off my Speedo and slingshot it over to him. “Sending these ahead!” Jin catches them. “Hey! Ah, fuck, I wish I had my goggles so I could spy on you underwater.” “I’ll keep my butt above the water for you.” Jin clutches the Speedo to his chest. “You really get me.”
I laugh and nearly swallow water as I dive underwater. Every day I feel more and more assured that we made the right choice to put the smuggling behind us so we could finally focus on being together without any fear something may go wrong. We had money in the bank and all the time in the world. I surface in front of Jin. He wraps his arms around me and presses his lips to mine. Our lives haven’t even started. I can’t wait for the kids.
