Ancient History
Lyn observed Luke, who was sitting across from him, but not directly. This meant a bit of gymnastics were needed to stare without seeming like he was doing so on purpose. For starters, Bella’s kid brother wore a dress shirt, which was a strange sight indeed. Not only was he dressed properly for dinner in designer clothes that looked great on him, he had also combed his hair to perfection. Barely anything remained to remind anyone of the surfer dude look he usually went for, effortlessly so.
That wasn’t even all. Luke wasn’t smiling like a goofball, let alone laughing as usual. He had an annoyed expression on his face, and every move he made when he reached for a glass or turned his head to talk to the people seated on his right or left seemed rigid, like he could barely contain his anger.
Lyn had to remind himself that he couldn’t possibly be the root of Luke’s poorly concealed fury. Something else had to be eating at him, and Lyn felt the need to pull him aside and ask him what was wrong. Had Bella accused him of dragging Brad away, convincing him to ditch the afternoon party? The siblings had a strained relationship as far as Lyn could tell. Still, Luke got along with Brad just fine, so there was that.
“Take a picture, it will last longer,” Alexander quipped while his elegant hands handled the utensils with an ease that Lyn could only interpret as sexy. As long as he kept such things to himself, he’d be fine. But he did stare a bit too long at Alexander’s hands after the demon moved his attention away from him.
“Bella must have been too hard on the kid,” Lyn said in a whisper. “I should talk to him.”
“No, you shouldn’t,” Alexander said, using the same pedantry in his words as he did in his gestures.
“We were there, too. And we are all older than him. Bella shouldn’t consider him the person solely responsible for Brad ditching on her earlier today.”
“So quick to offer yourself up for flagellation. Tell me, Lynton, have you ever considered asking for it in a safe environment? What you’re doing is dangerous.”
Lyn moved closer to Alexander’s shoulder. Although the other guests were busy with their own conversations and the soft music covered their words to some degree, he didn’t want anyone to overhear them. “Not everything is about sex, you dirty demon.”
Alexander, much to his surprise, let out a soft snort. It was very un-royal of him, although it suited that part of what had to be the demon’s uncouth genetic legacy.
“No comeback?” Lyn whispered. He enjoyed being this close, inhaling Alexander’s cologne and natural scent. “I thought I’d never see the day.”
“Oh, I have plenty, and it’s all for you. But I cannot give it to you with all these people watching.”
Heat climbed up his neck, spreading across his cheeks. Lyn knew he should stop tempting the sexy devil and cut this perilous conversation short, but he itched in completely different ways than usual while interacting with the posh asshole.
“You’re all bark and no bite. All you’ve ever done to me was a little bit of fingering.”
Alexander’s lips quirked in a knowing smile. Lyn was so close now he only needed to lean forward just a smidge to kiss his old pal in front of everyone. A part of him – a kinky one, for sure – indulged in the fantasy. For someone who kept his personal life a mystery from most people, such a vulgar display of his perversity sounded like the sort of thing he could jerk off to later.
“If it was only a little bit,” Alexander said while pushing a perfect morsel into his mouth and lowering his fork with elegant efficiency, “how come you wiggled your sexy ass so much?”
Lyn grinned and licked his lips. He was still pondering the perfect comeback, when a sudden noise made him jerk his head in another direction.
Luke had smacked his fork against the plate in front of him so hard the thing had broken, right down the middle. The fancy sauce was now seeping into the tablecloth, making the scene look like bloody murder.
Lyn stared at Bella’s brother, as much in shock as everyone else. It seemed uncanny to see the young man so furious, his eyes burning, his lips set in a grim line. He pushed his chair back and stood up to leave. There was no obvious reason for his outburst, and the people who must have been talking to him until that moment looked as surprised as everyone else.
He turned his head abruptly and threw Lyn a sharp stare. Lyn could swear he had just seen Luke mouthing something only he could understand, but he had failed to catch it.
He stood up. “I’ll check on him,” he said, not wanting to invent a stupid reason to get rid of Alexander. It was no use with the demon. He smelled lies from miles away.
“Do so,” Alexander said in an indifferent tone. “When wasting all this kindness on the undeserving comes to bite you in the ass, I’ll give you a treatment you’ll never forget.”
Lyn moved after Luke hurriedly. Later, he might parse Alexander’s words for hidden meanings, but right now, he needed to make sure that Luke wouldn’t do something that would throw a shadow over Brad’s upcoming wedding.
Alexander called it kindness. It wasn’t that. As usual, Lyn was pursuing his own goals.
***
It didn’t take him long to find Luke. He was out on the terrace, away from any prying eyes and, shockingly so, he was smoking.
“Hey,” Lyn said.
Luke seemed surprised to see him. At first, he made a sudden move as if he wanted to hide his cigarette, but then he made a show out of inhaling a long drag of it. Since Lyn was close enough now, he blew the blue smoke right in his unwanted guest’s face.
“What’s up, Lyn?” he asked, squaring his shoulders as if he needed to look taller.
“You asked me the same thing earlier,” Lyn pointed out. He ignored Luke’s obvious rudeness and leaned against the wooden balustrade. “I should be asking you that, though.”
“Why? Do you care about me or something? We’ve barely met, dude.” Luke chuckled humorlessly and took another drag of his cigarette.
“Yes, that is true. But it struck me as odd that no one hurried after you to see if you were fine. Or at least scold you for acting like a brat. Is everyone here your sister’s friend and not yours?” So far, he hadn’t caught a glimpse of parents, not even Brad’s. Overall, the entire guest list seemed to be composed of people younger than thirty-five, which gave Lyn a pretty good idea about who the people present were.
Luke shook his head, letting out a snort. He rested his elbows on the railing and stared into the distance. The ocean splashed gently against the shore as evening set in.
“You clean up nicely,” Lyn offered. “I was surprised to see you dressed to the nines like this.”
“Oh, fuck, stop it,” Luke moaned. “Why the hell do you have to be so perfect?”
“Perfect? I don’t see how--”
“Shut up,” Luke mumbled. “Everyone is just so much into you, it’s fucking annoying.”
Lyn sighed. “I was Brad’s friend in college. For a guy as young as you, that’s ancient history. And you must know we haven’t been in touch for the last eight years. I assure you, right now, you’re his favorite guy in the whole universe.”
Luke laughed. He seemed more at ease now. “For real, you think I’m like jealous of Brad being friends with you or something.”
“That’s basically what you hinted at.”
Luke laughed again and flicked his cigarette butt away. “You’re really oblivious, my good dude.”
“Oblivious. That’s a big word for a big bro like you.” Lyn risked pushing his fist into Luke’s shoulder for a moment.
“Yeah, I got them words,” Luke joked. “Surprised much?”
“Yes, definitely. I’m not going to ask you what’s wrong, because I know you won’t tell me, but if your sister got mad at you for this afternoon, just let me know. I’ll talk to her. At least we can share the blame.”
“Nah. I enjoy the hell out of seeing her mad at me. It might come as a shock to you, but I have very little satisfaction in life right now.”
“I get it. Do you want me to tell you what you should do?”
“Like a nosy uncle or something. Yeah, tell me.”
“Stop being a lazy fuck,” Lyn told him directly. “Even if it’s the thing only you like to do, just do it. Fuck everyone else and their expectations of you. But be smart about it. Secure some proper financing and then take the plunge. Cut the umbilical cord and see how the real world feels. You might like it. But don’t let your sister know I put you up to it. She might have my head, and I’m a bit attached to the good ol’ melon.”
“Oh, fuck,” Luke snickered wildly now, grabbing the railing with both hands, his entire body shaking. “I was wrong to say you were perfect. All you have in you are dad jokes.”
“Since when is that a bad thing? Dad jokes are totally cool,” Lyn replied.
Luke moved quickly and now was standing in front of Lyn, ignoring any rule of personal space. “So, Lyn,” he drawled, his handsome face too close for comfort, “has anyone called you ‘daddy’ yet?”
“Shut up, punk, I’m barely older than you.”
Luke chuckled and angled his head as if he was getting ready to sniff Lyn’s neck. It was getting increasingly uncomfortable, but Lyn didn’t want to lose face by being the first to move away. Bella’s brother was a mixed bag, a walking contradiction.
“Can I--” Luke started whispering.
“Hey Luke, what the hell, man?” Brad’s voice interrupted his future brother-in-law’s words and gave Lyn the perfect opportunity to escape the strange interaction without looking like he was running away from a situation he couldn’t control.
“I just went out for a smoke. What, did she ask you to check on me or something?” Luke strutted away, ignoring Brad’s arm as it shot forward to stop him.
“Leave him be,” Lyn said, walking slowly toward his friend. “Although it might be way too late given his age, it looks like he’s going through a rebellious phase.”
“Yeah,” Brad snorted, “fuck if I know what’s gotten into him, making a scene and storming out like that.”
Lyn had to admit that curiosity was gnawing at him. “So, was it Bella who put you up to it? To come check on him?”
Brad grinned at him and wrapped one arm around Lyn’s shoulders. “How did you guess?”
Lyn said nothing. Luke had basically just said it; and it looked like Brad, as always, didn’t care enough to check on people himself. Although he had given the clear impression so far that Luke was his best friend, he wasn’t very troubled by an outburst like Luke’s from earlier.
“Does he do this often?” Lyn continued his line of questioning.
“Luke?” Brad seemed as surprised as if they hadn’t been talking about the same guy until now. “Nope, never. This is a first.”
“How do you know? You haven’t known him for long, right?” Lyn pressed on.
Brad lost his smile. “What’s with the third degree, Lyn?”
“It’s not—hey, look, the kid doesn’t have many friends here. I mean, everyone is either Bella’s friend or yours. He feels left out,” Lyn explained, cowardly retreating.
“He’s not fucking twelve,” Brad snorted. “By the way, he’s pissing me off big time right now. Why was he standing so close to you? It looked pretty weird, not gonna lie.”
Lyn felt a cold chill run down his spine. “He’s challenging others, because he’s younger,” he said in an icy tone. “He was trying to get a reaction out of me, and I wasn’t willing to give him the satisfaction. Tell me, Brad, does everyone in this family you’re marrying into have you wrapped so tight around their little finger that you have to worry about every little thing they do?”
“Wow, wow, wow,” Brad said, pulling Lyn into a tight hug, “you really are a mean-ass lawyer. You gave me the chills just now. Here, feel me, I’m all goosebumps.”
Brad’s grip on his wrist was vice-like. It hurt but he didn’t complain as Brad made his hand run over his forearm. With his sleeves rolled up stylishly, Lyn now had free rein to run his fingers over the golden hairs and tanned skin underneath.
“Brad, where have you gone again?” Bella’s voice reached them from inside. She hadn’t seen them yet, which gave Lyn the opportunity to step back and disentangle his wrist from Brad’s grip.
“I’m here, babe,” Brad said out loud, making a beeline for the door. “By the way, Lyn,” he stopped for a moment and turned on his heel to face his friend, “tomorrow, for like one hour, nah, make it three hours, you’re all mine. I want you all to myself, without any of these fuckers around. You on?”
“Yeah, of course,” Lyn replied without thinking.
“Cool. Remember. You’re my ride or die. Don’t let me down.” Brad pretended to shoot at him with a cocked finger while walking backward inside to join his fiancée.
Lyn had no idea what he had just agreed to. So, as usual, Brad expected him to be at his beck and call. It was enough for him to say the word and Lyn would come running. Fuck, he was pathetic, all right.
“Are you going to let him down?” Alexander was so close, his question made Lyn jump.
“Fuck, where did you come from? The depths of hell?”
“No, I just walked from there to here,” Alexander said, making a gesture to illustrate the trajectory of his steps.
“How long have you been here? What did you hear?” Lyn questioned him right away.
“Enough to know no one’s called you ‘daddy’ yet and that Brad can still treat you like you’ll always have a crush on him.”
Lyn let out a long groan and ran his hands over his face. “Alexander, I’m sorry to break it to you, buddy, but you’re really weird. Are you stalking me?”
“No, I just came out here for a smoke,” Alexander said promptly.
“Wow, what a coincidence, just like Luke.”
“If it’s the only way to make you run after me, I’ll do it.”
The frankness of Alexander’s words didn’t match their playful tone.
“Don’t smoke,” Lyn said. “Wait, do you still have those foul things on you? Where are they?” He began to search Alexander’s pockets thoroughly.
“A little bit more to the left. You got them, you’re almost there.”
Lyn felt his fingers brushing something through the thin material of the inside pant pocket, as he followed Alexander’s instructions. He pulled his hand away as if he had been burned.
“You’re such a naughty, kinky asshole,” he exclaimed.
Alexander smirked. “You’re done with this dinner, right? Let’s go home.”
“Home? Can we call our touristy accommodations that?”
“For now,” Alexander said with a shrug.
Lyn just nodded, too annoyed with tonight’s events to care about Alexander’s strange choice of words. And he was fine with being taken away. Luke had behaved weirdly, Brad was no better, and Lyn had had enough of them both. Alexander was a much safer bet.
The only safe bet, actually.
***
“How much does it hurt?” Alexander asked him, slowly caressing Lyn’s ass.
“Are you going to pretend you care after fingering me like a madman all afternoon?” Lyn groaned in delight as Alexander’s hands moved higher, working knot after knot out of his back and shoulders.
Under the pretext that he needed to examine the extent of the damage done by his own fingers, Alexander had helped Lyn lie on his belly and then climbed on him, holding his legs together. And now, whatever he had in mind was turning into a sensuous massage.
Lyn didn’t complain. He could use a break from Brad’s family drama, if he could call it that. The same thing happened to him after a tough day in court. He needed to decompress even if he had kept his cool adequately throughout the events.
“I must remind you that you kept impaling yourself on my fingers,” Alexander said, while his hands traveled down, teasing Lyn’s crack. “Like a madman,” he added in a soft whisper that tickled.
Lyn closed his eyes, indulging some more in Alexander’s slow caress. He was the only one naked, which seemed an affront of sorts, given his roommate’s penchant for taking his clothes off all the time.
“I admit it,” he said. “Why don’t you undress, too?”
“Wouldn’t you feel a bit overly exposed to my mighty penis if I did?”
Lyn laughed. “Mighty penis. It’s not like you’re going to fuck me raw.” The moment the words left his lips, he felt the need to bite down on the bottom one hard. That surely offered plenty of room for interpretation.
“You tempt me a great deal. But you’re too tight and tense for me to press ahead on the matter of anal intercourse. My mighty penis shall suffer in silence.”
Lyn made an effort to turn over and Alexander took the cue right away, removing himself from Lyn’s bed. There was no mistake. His cock was hard, and its shape was clearly visible through his pants. It was tempting enough to make him want to reach out and grab it. It would feel pleasant, too.
“Fuck, I want to blow you,” Lyn said, licking his lips.
Alexander palmed his bulge, squeezing it. “It’s an appealing thought, Lynton, but not so fast. We need to talk.”
“Talk? What about?” Lyn finally managed to tear his eyes away from Alexander’s crotch to look his friend in the eyes.
The stare was the same as before, filled with a mix of longing and petty jealousy.
“He wants you all to himself. Tomorrow.” Alexander crossed his arms and stared down at Lyn, who lay there, naked and vulnerable.
Making any attempt to cover himself would be quickly interpreted as cowardice, so Lyn opted for a direct attack. He reached out and grabbed Alexander’s wrist, rubbing his fingers against the worn-out leather.
“Is this the one I gave you?” he asked.
“Yes,” Alexander replied. He added nothing and stood there, cold like a frozen fish.
His dick was still hard, though. Lyn could picture himself rubbing his cheek against the thing, inhaling the scent coming from the wiry bush he didn’t have to imagine since he had seen it for real.
“I still have that book you gave me,” he said simply. “To date, it remains the nicest gift anyone has ever given me. I don’t keep it out in the open, though. Somehow, the thought of someone flicking through its pages recklessly, without knowing what it’s about and where it came from, irks me. Stop me when you think you’ve received the desired amount of honesty from me.”
“Not by a long shot,” Alexander said promptly. “But I’m liking what I’m hearing. I was afraid, at one point, that you might’ve thrown it away, to spite me, even in absentia.”
Lyn adjusted his position, swinging his legs off the edge of the bed. This conversation had nothing sexual in it, but he hugged Alexander anyway and pressed his face against his crotch.
“I did miss you, fucker. Even as I continued to hate you.”
“Wow, Lynton,” Alexander quipped mercilessly but simultaneously beginning to caress Lyn’s head. “You’re really treating me to the best bits tonight.”
“Are you happy hearing about how I hated you?” Lyn snorted but didn’t pull away. It felt so natural to stay like this. Alexander, despite his usual frigid appearance, had a kind side. Knowing that he wouldn’t be pushed away gave him the certainty that he could be himself, even if only for a little while.
“That means you didn’t forget about me. That’s all I ask. Tomorrow, don’t fall for it, Lyn.” Alexander leaned forward, bending awkwardly to kiss Lyn’s forehead. “He’ll try to get you on his side, as usual, and you’re too nice and still too in love with him--”
“I’m not in love with him,” he protested.
“Lyn,” Alexander said in a reproachful tone that went straight to the heart.
“I’m not,” he insisted.
“Then why aren’t you married?”
Lyn felt his skin prickling. Alexander was getting too close, like usual. He got up. “I need to put some clothes on.”
Alexander caught his arm. “I find you’re more honest when you’re naked.”
Lyn rolled his eyes for show. “What do you want to know, Alexander? Not all gay people want to get married and raise kids. I’m leaning more toward the stereotype that prefers casual sex and meaningless relationships.”
“There’s nothing casual and meaningless about you. You’re the most purposeful person I’ve ever met,” Alexander countered. “So, why aren’t you married?”
“Married? You’re jumping straight to that? People date for a while first. Ah, sorry, maybe I misunderstood you. That’s what you did, right? You jumped head first into a marriage that ended badly, and frankly, I thought--” He swallowed his words.
“Continue.” Alexander still held Lyn’s arm with no intention of letting go. “Tell me everything you want to tell me. Come clean.”
Lyn shook his head. What was he supposed to say? That a married Alexander made as much sense to him as a polar bear at the beach?
“Tell me,” Alexander insisted, shaking him. “If you know more about my marriage than I do, go ahead and say it.”
Lyn pursed his lips. “No, I don’t. I apologize, I was out of line. I know nothing about your marriage and why it ended in separation.”
Alexander dropped his arm and took a step back. He looked so disappointed Lyn couldn’t bear to stare too long at him.
“You were doing so well. My bad. I’m moving too fast, although I know you.” Like an automaton, Alexander turned on his heel and walked out of the room.
“Alexander, wait,” Lynton called out, but the door closed with a soft thud.
He sat on the bed again and rubbed one hand over his eyes. His friends had gotten only more complicated with age. As much as he hoped things would be the same, it wasn’t possible. After all, he had behaved out of character, too, jumping into bed with Alexander as if they were that sort of friends, and keeping Brad at arm’s length, although the only reason he was here had been his wish to restart their friendship, severed so abruptly eight years ago.
Was that the only reason, though?
TBC
Thank you for reading!
@Derek - Lyn's journey to discover the truth... might be lengthy, but you can rest assured I will do my best to get him on the right path :)
@Buchanan - I'm glad you continue to enjoy the story!
@DavidB - Lyn is better than a cartoon character at missing... almost everything, not gonna lie!
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