Recap: Eli and Zack’s gym training session pushed their banter into charged territory, with Zack’s hands-on coaching leaving Eli rattled in ways he tried to hide.
The showers made things worse, or better, depending on how you looked at it. Zack’s soaked underwear left almost nothing hidden, and he asked Eli to take photos of him while still dripping wet. Back home, the tension followed them. Their jokes about dating profiles turned heavier when Zack admitted the photos weren’t meant for posting.
Then he asked if Eli ever shot nudes and hinted he wanted Eli to shoot him.
For the first time, Zack didn’t hide behind jokes.
And Eli was left wondering just how far Zack wanted this to go.
───
For a moment the room felt too quiet. Too still. Zack’s words hung in the air like the steam that followed us home from the gym. ‘Something next level’. And he said it with that look that always cut straight through me. Confident. Easy. A little amused, like he already knew what I was thinking before I even opened my mouth.
My throat felt tight as I whispered, “Fuck it. I’ll shoot your nudes.”
Zack’s grin spread slow and bright. He pushed off the couch and clapped his hands once like I had just given him the green light for something he was waiting for all night.
“My man. That is the spirit.” He stretched his arms overhead, muscles shifting under his skin like they were waking up again. “I am still pumped from the gym. This is exactly the right time.”
I regretted my words instantly and also knew I would have said them again even if I had ten different chances. I stood up and tried to pretend this was normal, that my pulse was not pounding so hard I could feel it in my teeth.
Zack walked toward my little backdrop setup near the dining table. I usually used it for product shots or portraits for friends, but seeing him stroll up to it shirtless with that loose, casual swagger made the whole thing feel like it had transformed into something else.
He looked at the different backdrops I kept rolled up along the wall. “Which one is the sexiest?” he asked.
I choked a little on air. “None of them are meant to be sexy.”
Zack laughed and pulled out the charcoal one, draping it behind him with surprising care. “This one. The plain one. My skin pops on dark tones. You taught me that.”
I swallowed. “I told you that for headshots.”
“Yeah,” he said with a wink. “And this is like headshots. Just less clothes.”
He kicked off his sweatpants in one smooth motion and suddenly he was just in blue american eagle underwear. They clung to him in a way that revealed more than they hid. I felt heat rise up my neck so fast it almost made me dizzy.
“Alright camera guy,” he said. “Where do you want me?”
“Just stand there,” I muttered, lifting the camera so he could not see my face. “And maybe relax.”
Zack flexed instead. Classic.
I sighed, but he caught the smile I was trying to hide. “Relax,” I repeated.
Zack let his shoulders fall. He stood tall, chest out, arms hanging loose by his sides. The lighting caught a drop of sweat sliding down the middle of his torso and disappeared under the waistband of his underwear.
I clicked without thinking. My body acted before my brain could lie to itself.
Zack shifted his weight. “You gotta tell me how to pose, man. This is your world. I am just the work of art.”
“You are not a work of art,” I said, but my voice cracked halfway through.
“Sure I am,” he said. “And you can move me around if you need to.” He planted his feet like he was ready for me to physically reposition his hips.
I nearly stopped breathing.
“No. I am good. Just turn a bit.” My hand stayed glued to the camera because if it did not, it would probably touch him and then I would actually pass out.
He turned. His side profile was insane. The cut lines along his ribs. The slight curve of his waist. The hard outline where the briefs hugged him tight. I clicked more shots, each one worse for my sanity.
Zack tilted his head. “Do I need more skin? More definition? I want this to look high level.”
“High level,” I repeated. “Right.”
He hooked his thumbs under the waistband and tugged it down just a little. Just enough to show the deep V of his hips and the start of his pubes. My breath caught in my throat so hard I had to pretend to cough to cover it.
Zack smirked like he knew exactly what he was doing. “This good?”
“I guess,” I said. My voice did not sound like mine.
He changed poses slowly. Arms up. Hands behind his head..revealing his hairy armpits and flexing his biceps.. Stomach tightening. Chest lifting. Then hands on hips. Then a half turn. Each movement smooth and completely without self consciousness. He was not doing it for attention. He was not performing. He was just comfortable. Completely at ease in his body.
I was not.
“Damn,” Zack said as I took another series of shots. “You look serious. Photographer mode.”
“Yeah. Trying to concentrate.”
“On what exactly?” He grinned, knowing exactly what I was avoiding.
I did not answer. If I opened my mouth, something reckless would fall out. Maybe I would admit that I was concentrating on the bulge in his underwear.
He stepped closer, close enough for me to feel the warmth coming off him. He lowered his voice slightly, playful but curious.
“What is next? More skin? Different angle?”
I kept the camera up because it was my shield. “If you want to take the underwear off for the next set, that is up to you.”
The words slipped out faster than I meant them to. I froze.
Zack’s eyes lit up with a slow, wicked smile. “So now we are leveling up.”
My heart almost jumped out of my chest.
He hooked his thumbs into the waistband again, glanced at me with a spark of challenge, and said, “Tell me when.”
The room felt warm. The air thick. My breath uneven.
“Go ahead,” I whispered before I could think.
Zack pulled the underwear down….Just one steady motion as he freed himself and let the fabric fall to the floor.
I lowered the camera because I could not pretend anymore.
He was beautiful.
He stood there like it was the most natural thing in the world. His body strong and sure. His cock soft but full. His skin flushed from the warm room. His ass sculpted like it belonged in a museum. He did not cover himself. He did not adjust anything. He simply waited for me to look. Really look.
“Alright,” Zack said softly, almost amused. “Let’s shoot the real set.”
He stood there with an ease that felt unreal. My camera hung heavy in my hands, even though it was the lightest thing in the room compared to what I was trying to carry inside my chest.
Zack did not pose at first. He just let me look.
His cock hung soft, about six inches even without any blood pushing through it. It rested against him with a quiet, natural weight. His pubes were trimmed close, neat enough to show he cared about presentation but not sculpted into anything artificial. His balls hung full and heavy, relaxed from the heat of the room. Everything about him looked warm and real and beautiful. There was no tension in how he stood. No shame. No covering. Just a ‘straight guy’ who was too comfortable in his skin for his own good.
I lifted the camera again because looking without it felt like standing on the edge of something I did not know how to handle.
He shifted so the light on the charcoal backdrop caught his body evenly. Shoulders back. Chest out. Cock hanging loose with a little bounce from the movement. I took three fast shots before I even realized I was doing it.
“Side,” I said next.
He turned slowly. The curve of his waist. The slope of his hip. The soft weight of his cock resting gently forward. The light caught the shadow under his balls. My breath stuttered. I forced my hands to stay steady.
“Back,” I whispered.
Zack turned again, and this view nearly knocked me out. His back was strong, wide at the shoulders and narrowing to a firm waist. And then his ass. Perfect and sculpted, tight curves that looked carved. Smooth skin. A faint tan line. He shifted his weight slightly and it flexed. My mouth went dry.
He looked back over his shoulder. “Is the lighting hitting my ass right?”
I tried to say yes. It came out like a sound I did not recognize.
Zack bent a little to adjust himself and check the light. Just a small movement, but his ass lifted and tightened and the line between his cheeks deepened in the soft shadow. I almost dropped the camera. I wanted to sink to the floor. My knees barely held.
He stood again and faced me. “Are these supposed to look seductive or natural?”
“Natural,” I squeaked before I could think.
Zack laughed under his breath. “Natural it is.”
He tried seductive anyway. He lowered his eyelids just a little, giving himself a softer gaze. He placed one hand just above his pubes, fingers splayed lightly over the lower part of his abs. Then he shifted his hips forward the faintest bit, enough to change the shape of the shadows. Enough to make my pulse kick hard.
Click.
Click.
Click.
He got more comfortable as the shoot went on. More playful. More loose in the way he moved.
“Man, this is actually fun,” he said while rolling his shoulders back. “I look crazy good in your lighting.”
“You look good without the lighting,” I said before my mind caught up with my mouth.
Zack paused. Only for a second. His eyes flicked to mine. Something sharp and aware flashed across his face. Then he smirked and let it go.
“Camera likes me,” he said.
“That is not the only thing that likes you,” I said quietly.
This time the pause was longer. Not long enough to break anything, but long enough to feel like the air thickened between us. He did not call it out. He did not tease. He just held that look for one heartbeat, then stepped closer.
Close enough that I had to tilt the lens upward. Close enough that my chest felt tight just breathing near him.
“Let us see how these look,” he said, voice lighter again.
I lowered the camera to preview the thumbnails. He leaned over me, still completely nude. I scrolled through the shots, but my attention kept failing. He was too close. His thigh brushed my arm. His cock hung inches away from my body.
Zack laughed suddenly and tapped the screen.
“Bro. My match is not going to want a picture of my soft dick on her phone.”
My face burned. My mouth opened, but nothing came out.
Zack turned his head toward me, still leaning over, his grin sharpening as if a private joke was forming behind his teeth. Nake-d. Relaxed. Completely unbothered.
He studied my face for a second. Then he said, quieter:
“So maybe we need to fix that.”
The world tilted.
His words felt warm against my ear.
My breath got stuck.
And I had no idea how to answer.
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