Matt heard a knocking on the door. He got up from his chair and opened it to see a smug looking guy smiling at him, "Hello stranger."
Chapter 2 Old Flames
It was around five in the morning. Kevin opened his eyes to find himself naked in an empty bed. He sat up and looked around the apartment. He didn't see anybody. He slowly got out of bed and searched for the toilet. He switched on the light and positioned himself. He leaned his head back and closed his eyes. Flashes of the previous night were still replaying in his head. His butt was still sore. It had been a long time since his last fuck and taking on Vince's cock was more than enough to loosen him up. He shook his tool and went to the sink. He washed his face and looked at himself in the mirror. His hair was still standing up at one side. He smiled.
Kevin was putting on his shoes when he heard the door open and saw Vince carrying a bag of bagels and two cups of coffee. He saw Kevin and grinned, "Good morning buddy!"
"Good morning to you too." Kevin stood up and helped Vince with the coffee.
Kevin sat down by the kitchen counter as Vince popped the bagels in the toaster. He took out some cream cheese and jam out of the fridge and set it on the counter. "Heading out already?"
"Yup. I'm gonna get some more shut-eye then hit the books."
"Philosophy?"
"Yep."
"I think you can handle it," Vince winked.
Kevin took a sip of his coffee and watched Vince trying to pry out the bagels out of the toaster. "Ow!" Vince quickly jolted backwards as his hand touched the hot surface. Kevin laughed at him.
"Damn that bloody toaster! Mum insisted I take this one but I think I'll buy a new one this afternoon."
"How do you do that?"
"Do what?"
"Change accents?"
"I guess it comes naturally. I grew up in New York and was raised by mum. What do 'ya expect?"
He set down the bagels and started spreading them with cheese and jam. He handed one to Kevin. There was a brief moment of silence as Kevin just watched his friend.
"You said something last night. You told me it's been a while. How long exactly?"
"You know how long it is." Kevin winked as he took a bite of his bagel.
"Don't be a smartass." Vince laughed.
"More than a year I guess."
"Wow. That is long. Who was it with?"
"We're getting a little bit personal don't `ya think?"
"Hey, friends don't keep secrets from one another."
Kevin thought about it for a second. "It was with my best bud in high school."
"Does this best bud have a name?"
"Xavier."
"So what happened? Gimme the details. You do know that I'm just going to keep prying it outta `ya."
Kevin took a sip from his coffee and started recounting the first time.
"I studied in private school back in L.A. It was a strict Catholic school run by priests and nuns. Everybody seemed so prim and perfect. It was sick. Have you ever watched Cruel Intentions?"
"Yeah, one of my faves actually." Vince took a bite of his bagel.
"School was exactly like that. Everybody had their secrets and everybody was backstabbing and screwing everybody over. I wanted none of that shit. I just went there to study and make good grades 'cause My dad was payin' for my tuition fee and I didn't want to let him down... but there was this one time I went to detention for punching this asshole in the face. The fucker called my mom a social-climbing whore. He had it coming."
"Good on `ya."
"Are you part Australian too?"
"For you, I can be." Vince grinned.
Kevin just shook his head and continued. "Xavier and I were the only ones in detention. I think he was in for disrupting the class or something. He was pretty outspoken. Anyway, I knew him from class but we really didn't get to talk much. I always saw him as one of those rich snobs who got by because of their trust funds but once we started talking, I realized that we were practically on the same side. His parents were filthy rich. His dad owned this major company in Australia. Anyway, he hated it. He wasn't really into the lifestyles of the rich and famous. He was actually pretty cool."
"We started hanging out a lot. We went to parties and stuff. I didn't like to mingle a lot so people always saw me as some anti-social prick. It was all good because so did he. The only reason people didn't deem him anti-social was because a lot people flocked to him just because for them, he was money. He saw through all of them though."
"His parents always had these social gatherings. I actually never understood why those people hold those events in the first place. I think they just want to show off how much they can splurge... It was during one of those gatherings that he and I... did it."
Vince put down his bagel. "Just that? Did it? Come on! I want the details."
"Perv," Kevin laughed. "We went into one of the back rooms. Both of us were horny and I was already drunk after just a glass or two of wine. We were sitting down and I felt his hand on my thigh as he started rubbing. He made me so fucking hard. I groped him too and before you knew it we started kissing. We tore each others' clothes off and started fucking like bunnies."
"So who was on top?"
Kevin nearly choked on his bagel at his friend's outright curiosity. "You really don't hold back. do 'ya?"
"Nope."
"He was 'on top' but I plowed his ass. I was a little tipsy and nervous so he just lay me down on the floor and he rode me. It was really exciting knowing that everybody was just in the other room."
"You kinky bastard." Vince winked as he handed Kevin another bagel.
"We've done it ever since. I learned a lot of things from the guy. He taught me the works. He taught me how to give head and stuff."
"He taught you how to do that? Excellent! I'd like to meet this mentor of yours." Both Vince and Kevin laughed.
"Anyway, right after graduation he told me his dad was sending him to Melbourne for college. He really didn't have much of a choice then. I was really depressed but I had to make the best of it. I planned this whole night. I saved up enough for a reservation at a hotel. We ended up having sex the entire night. Xavier was always a bottom but I decided to give it up for him that night. You can say that he was my first everything."
"So you mean, when you took it up last night... that was your second time as bottom?"
Kevin nodded and smiled sheepishly.
"I suddenly feel special."
"You should... because it's probably never going to happen again. My ass still hurts like hell."
Vince laughed.
"That was the last time we did it and I haven't seen or heard from him since. He wasn't answering back my emails and I didn't have a number or address. I guess we just lost touch."
"That sucks."
"How about you Mr. Scottish-accent-guy?"
"Mr. Scottish-accent-guy? That's some lame shit." Vince laughed as Kevin threw a piece of his bagel towards him.
"Where do I even start?" Vince stared the ceiling, his hand under his chin. "I can't remember actually," he grinned.
"No fair." Kevin protested. "You better remember something 'cause I just poured my heart out right there."
"Okay. I guess it was in my junior year. I was in a serious relationship with my girlfriend back then. Right after a party she and I were having a threesome with a close buddy of mine. Things were getting hot and I started paying more attention to my buddy than my girl. She really didn't notice it since we were banging her like there was no tomorrow, but it was kinda obvious that we fucked as if she wasn't there."
"After that, things got a little complicated. My girl started become a more irritable and shit. I soon discovered that she was banging another guy. I dumped her sorry ass right before prom. She was the fucking queen alright."
"That's pretty harsh." Kevin interrupted.
"Believe me buddy, she deserved it. Not only was she fucking the MVP, she was doing the whole team... except Allen Ferguson though, I think his acne bothered her," he chuckled.
"Anyway, this buddy of mine and I agreed that we had a lot of fun in the threesome that we decided to take it to the next level, no woman this time. I went to his place and we started sucking each other. Once you've tasted cock, I don't think you'll ever go back to pussy again... well, maybe sometimes." Vince winked.
"We got some lube and a couple of condoms and we banged each other in his room. My butt was sore for a week I think. We tried every position there was in the book. I liked taking it up more than he did so that became our arrangement."
"What's his name?"
"Tyler, Tyler Lockhart," Vince choked a bit. His face suddenly turned all serious.
"Dude, are you okay?"
"Yeah... Enough of the past. We're in the fucking present for cryin' out loud!" Vince grinned. "Let's say we move on, buddy and start somethin' new."
"What? Are you proposing... us?"
"Nah. I'm not a big fan of commitments, at least not the romantic kind... too draining for me. How about best buds, what do `ya say?"
"You, my friend, are no Xavier." Kevin smiled. "You're something different."
"What am I then?"
"I still don't know... I'm thinking about it." Kevin grabbed another bagel and headed for the door.
"Do you want me to drive you back? I'm pickin' up mum anyway."
"No. I'll just take a cab. Thanks for breakfast... and dinner." Kevin smiled and walked out the door. In truth, he was confused about how he felt. He was even more confused with the way Vince reacted to this Tyler guy. He didn't want to ask Vince any further. `Maybe next time' he thought.
It was around seven when he got back to their room. If there's one thing he hated about New York city, it was the morning rush traffic. He literally could have walked faster than the cab. He looked at the cab's clock and figured there was no chance he was going to catch any sleep. Kevin quietly opened the door thinking Matt was still in bed. He went inside and slowly made his way to his desk. He was startled to see Matt already busy, his head buried in a thick law book.
"Good morning roomie!" Matt beamed at Kevin, taking a break from the book he was reading.
"Hey Matty. How long have you been up?"
"A couple of hours ago. I decided to hit the pool this morning before hitting the books. Where the heck have you been? You didn't sleep here last night."
"Yeah. I crashed at Vince's after helping him move stuff."
"Oh... Well, I made coffee if `ya want."
"Nah. I'm good. Thanks anyway. I think I'm gonna hit the showers first then get back to studying."
"Okie dokie."
Kevin shook his head, smiling. What a dork' he told himself a really hot dork'. Kevin took off his shirt and could still smell the aftermath of his tryst the night before. He shucked his shirt and pants on his bed. He stripped down his boxers and wrapped himself in a towel. He grabbed his kit and walked to the showers down the hall.
He adjusted the knobs to get the right temperature. He let the warm water hit his head and run down his body. He started rubbing his chest and massaging his balls. The water felt really good as it washed away the stains from the previous night. He lathered up his head. As he soaped his body, Kevin started thinking about the status of his relationship with Vince. He's only known the guy for less than three weeks but there was something about him that made him feel like he's known him a lot longer. They've already had sex so that practically qualifies them as a little bit more than friends. What the hell were they?
Kevin started soaping his semi-hard cock. He checked out the showers to make sure nobody was there. He started stroking his cock with one hand and playing with his nipples with the other. He remembered Vince's tool forcing its way up his chute. He gradually quickened his pace as he recounted that cum-drenched kiss they shared. He started shooting on the shower wall with a smile etched on his face. He let the water clean up the mess. He rinsed off, towelled down, shaved, and went back to his room.
Kevin figured it was his turn to play with his roommate when he noticed Matt taking quick glances at him once he entered the room. He faced Matt, slowly peeled off his towel and started to dry his hair. Matt couldn't help but look at the semi-hard penis hanging a few feet in front of him. He looked up and saw that Kevin was staring back at him as he continued to dry his hair.
"Liking the show Matty?" Kevin laughed as he noticed the tent in his roommate's shorts.
Matt flipped him off. Kevin smiled triumphantly as he threw the towel aside and put on a clean pair of underwear. He sat down on his desk and started reading. He still had an hour before his first class. `No sweat. I can handle this' he thought to himself.
Vince parked his car and helped his mom carry her luggage to the airport terminal. They had been talking on the way there. Moira had made a decision to stay in Scotland for good so she could tend to her ailing brother. Vince perfectly understood his mom's reasons for leaving but was struggling with his emotions. He put down her bags and hugged his mom.
"Remember what I told ya Vincent. Don't let those Americans get to ya when they try to tear ya down. We're Scots. We kick em on the shins."
Vince laughed as he hugged his mom tighter.
"Don't let me down sonny, don't let yer dad down. Make us proud. Do whatever ya want with `yer life, just be good."
"I will mum. Take good care of Uncle Ronnie."
Mother and son started tearing up as they broke the embrace.
"Damn ya lad! Don't cry!" she wiped his son's tears. "I'll be phonin' ya when I get there."
"I'll come by this Christmas."
"I'll be waitin'"
"I love `ya mum." Vince kissed his mom's cheek and hugged her once last time.
"I love `ya too Vincent."
Moira took her bags and boarded the plane as her son watched her disappear through the door.
Since Matt's last class for the day was rescheduled, he really had nothing to do the entire day. His roommate was still in class so he decided to hit the campus. He walked around aimlessly for a couple of minutes thinking of something to do to pass the time.
"Matty!"
He turned around to see Jessica running towards him. He adjusted his glasses as she went to hug him.
"Wassup beautiful?"
Jessica laughed. "You're hysterical!"
Matt was a bit confused and took it as a compliment.
"Ally's still in class and I have nothing else to do. I saw you and well, I'm taking you out to dinner."
"What? Are you asking me out?"
"I'm not asking. I'm telling you."
"On a date?"
"Why not?"
"This must be my lucky day." Matt smiled and presented his arm to her. "Shall we mademoiselle?"
Jessica giggled and they set off with Jessica grabbing hold of Matt's arm.
True enough, Dr. Patterson did give a test that afternoon. She warned them that those who failed the test would only have a 50-50 shot at passing. Kevin finished the test fastest and was pretty confident with his answers. He walked to the front of the class and placed his paper on the desk. He looked around the room and saw Ally struggling a bit. He tried suppressing his laugh when he saw the guy he debated with a couple of meetings ago slumped over his paper, trying to figure out the right answers. Dr. Patterson nodded to him as he walked out the classroom door. Kevin felt his cellphone vibrating and smiled when saw the caller ID.
"Hello buddy... or whatever it is we're supposed to be."
Kevin laughed. "Why are you calling me at this time? I'm in class."
"No you're not. You just finished taking the test and would probably be jerking off right now thinking of me if I wasn't calling you at this moment."
"How the heck do you know that?"
"I figured as much. I took the test a year ago so I thought you'd be out the same time I was. So what're you planning to do now?"
"I'd probably go back to the dorms and see what Matty's up to then grab something to eat."
"You'd be wasting your time, Matty's not there."
"What, are you some kind of psychic now?"
"Nah. I saw him and Jessica on their way to the Half Pint a while ago."
"Where the heck are you?"
He felt someone tap his shoulder. Kevin jumped and turned around. "Jeez man! Don't do that!"
"Do what?" Vince grinned.
"How do you manage to sneak up like that?"
"It's a secret I'll never tell. Anyway, since `ya don't have anything planned at the moment, do you wanna..." Vince raised his eyebrow.
"You're a horndog you know that?" Kevin smiled.
In a few minutes, the boys were in Kevin's dorm room with their clothes all over the floor. Kevin felt Vince's tongue running down the side of his neck, just behind his left ear. He could feel his hot breath touching his skin. Vince held the back of Kevin's head with his left hand. He slowly ran his fingers back and forth through Kevin's messy brown hair. He held Kevin's throbbing boner with his right hand and slowly jerked him off. Kevin traced Vince's back with his right hand and used the other to jerk his buddy's cock.
Vince gently pushed Kevin on his back on the bed and straddled his legs. He bent forward and pushed his tongue past Kevin's parted lips. They sucked each other's tongue for a little while before Vince's found its way down to Kevin's longing cock. He traced the underside of the long tool with his tongue until he reached the tip and moved it around the slit. Kevin grabbed Vince's hair and moaned. "Suck that."
Vince sucked his entire shaft down to his pubes. Kevin pushed his had back and curled his toes. "Aw fuck!" Vince purred through his mouth and sent vibrations through Kevin's rigid cock. "Yeeeaaahhh!" Kevin moaned louder. Vince slowly pulled his head up and grinned at Kevin. "D'ya like that?"
Kevin looked down, still shaking a little. "Yeah. Do that again."
Vince parted his lips and went down on his buddy's cock. Kevin grasped Vince's hair tightly with both hands and thrust himself upward. Vince used his tongue licked under the base of Kevin's cock and purred. The vibrations were more intense.
"Uuuh!" Kevin eyes shot up as he moaned and pulled his cock back a little bit. He slowly started to face fuck his buddy. Vince let Kevin take the lead as he tightened his lips around his buddy's member. His lips were being coated in Kevin's precum. Kevin moaned and let Vince's mouth slip off his cock.
Vince got on all fours on top of the bed with his ass sticking out the edge. Kevin knelt behind him and started licking the rim as he slowly massaged the cheeks. Vince closed his eyes as he felt Kevin's hot tongue lashing inside his hole. Kevin pushed a finger in as he continued licking the rim. He pushed another finger in which made Vince shudder. "Fuck me buddy. I want you inside me."
Kevin quickly stood up and found some lube and a condom. He ripped the pack and slid the rubber on his throbbing cock. He lubed up Vince's ass with two fingers before positioning himself. "Are you good?"
"Fuck me."
Vince felt the head starting to penetrate his tight hole. Vince pushed his ass back and helped Kevin get it in. Both guys were moaning loudly as they felt Kevin's dick slide in inch by inch. Kevin started moving his hips back and forth sending his cock deep inside Vince's hole. Vince pushed back into Kevin's cock as they found a steady rhythm. Kevin held his buddy by the waist and started pounding his ass. Kevin's bed started shaking as the force of his thrusts got stronger.
"Aaahh! Yeeeaaah! Fuck me harder!"
Kevin pushed harder, the head of cock slamming into Vince's prostate sending a jolt through Vince's whole body. Vince was moaning loudly. If someone was in the other room at that moment, they would have probably heard it. Vince needed to get off and he felt it coming. Vince took hold of his own erection and started jerking it off. Precum was already leaking on Kevin's sheets. Kevin pulled Vince's hand away and took his buddy's cock in his own. He jerked Vince off as he filled his ass. Vince was very close. With Kevin's expert stroking and cock hitting his prostate, he blew a massive load on Kevin's sheets. He lost count how many times he shot. Some of cum spewed out and covered his chin while most of covered Kevin's sheets and hand. Vince's orgasm caused his ass to clench tighter on Kevin's cock and forced Kevin to blow his load in the rubber. Kevin moaned as he kept shooting. Kevin was panting heavily as he stopped pounding his buddy's ass. He leaned forward. Using his cum-soaked hand, he held Vince's chin and bent over for a long wet kiss.
Vince collapsed on the cum-drenched sheets as he gasped for breath. Kevin pulled out his now deflating cock out of his buddy's hole. He pulled off the condom and threw it in the trashcan. He went back to bed and laid down beside Vince. The two of them kissed once more. Vince flashed a grin and licked his lips as he looked at Kevin.
"You were an animal. Damn. I'm gonna be sore for a couple of days."
"Just payin' you back." Kevin smiled. "Now get off my sheets. I have to clean up."
"Aw. Can't I sleep some more mum?"
Both of them laughed as Kevin's cellphone started ringing. Kevin took out a clean shirt of his and wiped the cum off his hands and cock and threw it to Vince. He answered his phone.
"Hello gorgeous," Kevin said still a little out of breath.
"Well, hello to you too. Why are you panting?"
"Just came in from a good workout." Kevin turned around and winked at Vince who was still basking in their afterglow. "What's up?"
"You tell me."
"School's pretty good. I'm pretty sure I aced philosophy at this point."
"That's good to hear. Anything else happen?"
"None that I know of. How `bout you? What did the doctors say?"
As Vince wiped himself clean, he caught the last thing Kevin said before he started lowering his voice. Vince fished around for his clothes on the floor. He put on his underwear and pulled up his pants. He found his shirt and jacket and put them on. Just as Vince was finished fixing up, Kevin ended the call and took out a juice from the fridge and took a large gulp. Vince was busy concentrating on the bed. Kevin stood beside his buddy and looked at his sheets.
"You could probably sell this to an art gallery and get a fortune. You can call it `Cum on a Sheet'"
"How very creative of you." Kevin jeered as he took another big gulp of his juice and set the empty bottle down on Matt's desk.
Kevin put his clothes back on as Vince pulled the sheets off of Kevin's bed. "Gotta have these sent to laundry ASAP."
Kevin opened the windows to let the air in. Vince handed Kevin the sheets and gave him a quick peck on the lips. "That was a good one buddy."
Kevin smiled. "I think I know what we are now... We're fuck buddies."
Vince laughed. "I could've thought of that long before you did. Anyway, I need to go. I still have a paper to work on... I think." Vince flashed Kevin one of his naughty grins and walked out the door. Just as he closed it, he bumped right into Matt.
"Hey buddy!" He winked at Matt as he walked off to the elevator.
Matt opened the door and saw Kevin hauling out his sheets. "Why was Vince here... and why are you taking those out?"
"We were just talking. Vince spilled juice on it. I'm gonna take this down to laundry." Kevin passed Matt as he walked out the door.
Matt just shrugged his shoulders. He turned on his laptop and saw the empty bottle of juice on the table. He shook his head and looked for the trash can. He saw the discarded condom and smiled. "He spilled some juice alright."
Matt threw the bottle in the trash and turned on his laptop. He started shivering and decided to close the windows. He sat down in front of his laptop and started going through some emails when he heard a knocking on the door. He got up from his chair and opened it to see a smug looking guy smiling at him, "Hello stranger."
A very confused Matt looked at guy who was still smiling. The guy was about 5'11" and obviously worked out a lot. He had deep green eyes and a very prominent jaw. He was wearing a black baseball cap that read Melbourne University.
"Um... can I help you?"
"Is Kev here?"
"Xavier?"
The guy turned around and saw a very surprised Kevin standing behind him.
"Holy shit! How've `ya been?" Kevin wrapped his arms around his best bud and gave him a tight bear hug. Xavier hugged back.
"Been better."
"Shit! You look like a fuckin' aborigine already!"
"Got my tan on down there."
Matt was still standing by the doorway watching the two friends catch up.
"Dude, this my roommate Matt. Matt this is my best bud Xavier."
"Nice to meet `ya Matt."
"Same here."
"Wanna come in?"
"I thought you'd never ask."
The three guys went in and Matt closed the door.
"Which bed is yours?"
"The one without the sheets. A friend of mine spilled juice on it so I had it washed."
Matt suppressed a laugh.
Xavier sat down and looked around the room. "Nice place `ya got here." He took off his cap and exposed his short red hair which he started to mess up a bit.
"Want a juice or water?"
"D'ya have a beer... oh, right you have zero tolerance." Xavier slapped his forehead. "How could I forget that? You were throwing up all over Sharon Marcy's birthday party all night. Good times!"
Matt was laughing while Kevin shot his best bud an icy stare and threw a bottle of water at him. Xavier caught it before it hit his face.
"I really miss pissin' you off."
"I was this close to forgetting that incident." Kevin squeezed his index finger and thumb together. "This close!"
"Why the heck would you want to forget that? If I remember it well, you were standing on top of the dining table shouting `Down with the evil capitalist bitch' at Sharon before you passed out. That was classic."
Matt laughed even harder.
"Yeah. I was banned from all parties the rest of my senior year."
"You never really liked those anyway."
"You have a point."
"So Matt, how've you been holding up with this lunatic as a roommate?"
Matt chuckled. "He's actually pretty sane."
"Wow. That's a surprise."
Kevin looked at Xavier. "Wait a minute. How the hell did you know I was here?"
"I actually went to visit in L.A. I caught your mom at the diner and she told me you were studying all the way here so I took the earliest flight out."
"My mom knew you were coming?"
"Yup. Told her to keep it a secret. I wanted to surprise you."
"You surprised me alright."
Xavier stood up and put his cap back on. "As much I want to stay here, I really need an ice cold beer. Do `ya know any bars near here?"
"Yeah there's a really good one a couple of blocks from here."
"Well Matt, it's really been nice meeting `ya but my buddy and I have a lot of catching up to do... not unless you wanna join us and fill me in what I missed so far."
Matt wanted to say yes but caught Kevin's reflection on the back of his glasses waving `no' towards Xavier. "I think I'll stay here and study a bit. Maybe next time."
"I'll put you up on that."
The two friends went out of the room and headed to the elevator.
"Your roommate looks cool, a bit geeky though."
"Yeah but you should see him naked."
Xavier smiled widely. "So have you..."
"No! Hell no! He caught me jerkin' off once and I teased him a bit but that's it."
"Do you think he's gay?"
"Nah. He looks a bit bi-curious to me but I think he's as straight as they come."
They went into the empty elevator and waited for the doors to close. Xavier grabbed Kevin's butt and squeezed it. "I missed this."
Kevin giggled and shooed his friend's hand.
"You smell like a fresh fuck. If you're roommate's straight, who did `ya bang?"
"That's none of your business." Kevin smiled.
"Is he cute?"
"Between you and him, I liked seeing his face more when he was inside of me."
"You let him fuck you?"
Kevin just smiled as the elevators door opened and a couple of students came in as they headed out.
"I can't believe you let someone take your ass," Xavier whispered as he took a swig of his beer.
"It's been a long time. You left me wanting to do it again."
Xavier smiled. "I still can't believe you let somebody else fuck you. I thought what we had was special."
"It was and it still is but you left and didn't answer my emails or anything. I thought it was over so I kinda moved on."
Xavier stayed silent for a while. He looked at his beer for a while. "I wanted to call you when I got there. I actually read all you emails, including the last one." Xavier took another swig of beer. "Did you mean it?"
Kevin looked straight at Xavier but his gaze was somewhere else. "I did. So why didn't you call me or write back?"
"Things got complicated then. I was going to stay there for the long haul and I knew that the distance would somehow strain our friendship so I just decided to try to cool things off. I thought it'd be better if we both just moved on and go our separate ways... When I read your last email I really felt guilty that you felt that way. I was questioning myself if I felt the same way too. I really wanted to reply to your email but I just couldn't lie to you and say that I've been busy or something. I knew you meant what you said and I knew you were hurt." Xavier downed the last of his beer.
"I tried finding someone else while I was there so I could forget about you. But I found that harder. I wouldn't be able to live with myself if I did. You're my best bud, actually you're more than that. I realized that I did feel the same way and I hate myself for doing that to you. I told my dad I wanted to go back and finish my studies here and that I wasn't taking no for an answer. I wanted to see you again Kev. I wanted to say sorry. I wanted us to get back together if you'd take me but I guess it's too late for that."
Kevin was tearing up but didn't want to show it. "So you're staying here?"
"Yeah."
"And you're doing this for me?"
"Yeah."
Kevin stood up. "Let's get out of here."
Kevin walked to the door and Xavier followed him. Kevin waited for Xavier as they walked down the street together. They walked two blocks in utter silence. Xavier couldn't take it anymore and grabbed Kevin by the shoulder. "Look, Kev..."
Kevin cut him off. "I wish you just lied to me and told me you were going for a visit and that you were too busy to read the emails I sent you. In fact, I wish you hadn't said anything at all."
Xavier could feel Kevin's anger even though he didn't look it yet.
"I really missed you and I hope things just go back..."
"But they won't. I've moved on just like you wanted me to and now you want me to go back? You selfish bastard! And by the way your reason is stupid! Stupid! What the fuck were you thinking?"
Xavier tried to come closer but Kevin pushed him. A woman who was walking by backed off and walked to the other side.
"Look, I said I'm sorry okay? I fucked up big time! I did. I wasn't thinking straight. I wasn't really sure how I felt back then but now I know and I wanted you to know that."
"Just leave me alone Xavier. The past is past, let's not live in it." Kevin walked away.
...Now you act so surprised To hear what you already know And all you really had to do was ask I'd have told you straight away All those lies were truth And all that was false was fact
Vince was alone in his apartment sitting on the couch, playing Ray Lamontagne's Lesson Learned on his guitar.
Now you hold me close and hard But I was like a statue at most Refusing to acknowledge you'd been hurt Now you're clawing at my throat And you're crying all is lost But your tears they felt so hot upon my shirt...
There was a knock on the door. Vince put down his guitar and opened the door to see Kevin standing there. "Can I come in? I didn't know anyone else to talk to."
"Come in."
Kevin walked past Vince and sat down on the small couch. Vince closed the door and sat down beside him. He noticed something was bothering his friend.
"What's wrong buddy?"
"Xavier came here to see me."
"Xavier? The, Xavier?"
"Yeah. He dissed me for a couple of months then he just showed up a year later, unannounced, to say that he wanted me to forget what he did and asked me to go back to the way we were. That bastard!"
Vince didn't want to say anything and let Kevin get everything off his chest.
"How the hell do I that? How the hell could he do that to me?" Tears started rolling down his face as he wiped them with the palm of his hand.
Vince held Kevin and gently pulled him towards his shoulder. He let him narrate everything Xavier said and cry for a while. Kevin straightened up and laughed at himself with his eyes still puffy. "Fuck. I'm such a fucking mess."
"It's okay. He was your best bud... probably more than that. It's okay to just let it out."
Kevin just sighed and looked at his friend. "This is just stupid. And now he's staying here. He came all the way back from Australia because he wants to be with me... and I just pushed him away a while ago and pretty much told him to fuck off."
"Do you really want him to stay away?"
"I don't know. I really don't know."
"The way you talked to me about him this morning sounded like you really miss the guy. Why don't give him another chance? At least now you know how he feels about you. I don't know anyone else who'd fly half way around the world to be with you. What do `ya say? Give it a shot."
"After what I just did? I don't even know where he's staying or his cellphone number."
"You can leave that all to me. You said it yourself, I have my way of sneaking up on people."
"You are a fucking stalker!" Kevin laughed.
"Now quit crying `ya baby! Suck it up. I'll find a way to get him to talk to you and tomorrow, you two will patch things up and everything will be back to normal."
"And where does that leave us?"
"We're buddies remember? Well... the fucking kind."
Kevin laughed.
"If you two are getting back together then we can just stay buddies. There's nothin' wrong with that." Vince grinned.
"I guess you're right... I'd better be going. I still have stuff to do. Thanks a lot for listening."
Kevin stood up and headed out the door with Vince following him from behind.
"Anytime buddy. I'll call `ya when I find your man," Vince winked.
"Good night."
"See `ya."
Vince closed the door and sat back down on his couch and started playing where he left off.
...Was it you who told me once Now looking back it seems so real That all our mistakes are merely grist for the mill? So why is it now after I had my fill That you steal from me the sorrow that I've earned Shall we call this a lesson learned? Shall we call this a lesson learned?
AUTHOR'S NOTE:
First off, I'd really like to thank all the people who wrote back. Thank you so much! The feedback I got from the first chapter was just overwhelming and I can't express my gratitude enough.
I'm posting this earlier... I originally planned to post this next Monday but since I'll be flying to Scotland this weekend I might as well do it now. I decided to flesh out Kevin and Vince's story a little bit here. For all those fans of Matty out there, don't fret. You'll get to have more of him in the next chapter.
Oh and if anyone was offended by the aborigine comment, I apologize. I didn't mean to offend. If any of you have comments/suggestions/questions you can send me an e-mail at zenlikewriter@yahoo.com As always, they will be much appreciated.
Cheers! -gabe