Streak - 9. Chapter 9

September 14, 2002

Concord, CA

Zach

 

“Alright,” the doctor said, “you need to rest your ankle. That means staying off of it as much as possible. When you walk on it, I want you to wear this brace.” He gestured at the brace they’d put on my injury. “If it’s still painful, you should use crutches.” No way I was using crutches, but I didn’t argue about it.

“I can do that,” I said. I was pretty much not listening to him, because I just wanted to get the fuck out of the hospital, but Will had the notes they’d given me in his hands, and he was scribbling on them, writing down what the doctor was telling us.

“That brace will also serve to compress the sprain, which is a good thing. Wearing it more than when you walk is a good thing.”

“I’ll keep that in mind,” I said dismissively. I was sure all of this shit was in the notes he gave us, and as I saw it, all he was doing now was keeping me from leaving with his rambling.

“You should put ice on it to reduce the swelling, and you should elevate it. As much as you can, your ankle should be above the level of your heart,” he said, in his monotone voice. I thought about elevating my ankle, and that made me think of sex, and I almost started laughing.

“I’ll remember to keep my ankles elevated,” I said, and winked at Will so no one else could see. He looked down at the notes, grinning, trying not to laugh as well.

“Excellent,” he said. They wheeled me out of the hospital, with Will and Frank walking with me. They helped me into the passenger seat of Frank’s Mercedes Benz S600, which was a kick-ass car. He let me drive it every once in a while, and the smooth V-12 engine could send this huge beast hurtling down the freeway pretty fucking fast. Will sat in the back and poked his head up between the two front seats to talk to us.

“Darius drove your Durango home and Isidore went with him,” Frank explained. I already knew that, since Will had taken my keys out to Darius. “That’s why they’re not here.”

“That’s fine,” I said. “It’s probably just as well. I need a shower.” They’d taken me to the hospital directly from the field, and I’d been pretty sweaty before then. Now that the perspiration had dried, I just smelled rank.

“That was one amazing game you had,” Frank said, making me smile. Even when I fucked up, he always found something good to say about my performance. I grimaced when I thought about how my father talked to me after a game. He was just the opposite. No matter what I did, he found something to criticize. “I called your parents and told them about the game, and your sprain.”

“So I don’t need to call them?” I asked hopefully.

“I think tomorrow is soon enough,” he said with a knowing grin.

“Thanks.” From there, our conversation evolved into an analysis of the game, and our performance. It was obvious to Frank that our offense had totally sucked, and that we were lucky to pull out the score that we did.

“If you guys don’t get your shit together next weekend, you’re gonna get shellacked,” he pronounced. Most people who watched the games didn’t know what the fuck they were talking about, so I usually just nodded when they spewed useless advice, but Frank knew football, and he was right.

“No shit,” I agreed.

“Will you be able to play?” Will asked. Next week was one of our two huge games for the season, and it was in Honolulu. I did not want to miss that game.

“I don’t know,” I told him. “The doctor said I have to see how this thing heals up.” Unless I had to use crutches, as far as I was concerned, I’d play.

“You can take it easy for the rest of the weekend,” Frank said. “You should probably call your coach and give him an update.”

“I should,” I agreed, and pulled out my phone. Some coaches didn’t give out their phone numbers to the players, but Ladouceur did. We were smart enough not to bug him unless it was important, and if it were important, he’d want to know about it. I found his number in my contacts and dialed it.

“Hello,” he said, in that same direct but calm voice he used with us.

“Hey Coach, it’s Zach Hayes,” I said, even though he probably knew that from caller-ID.

“How are you doing?” he asked with concern, showing the kind man that lurked beneath his quiet exterior.

“Hurts pretty bad, but not as bad as it did a couple of hours ago,” I said honestly.

“The doc told me you only had a sprain,” he said, referring to our team doctor.

“That’s what they tell me,” I said. “They think if I rest it, I might be able to play next weekend.” The doctors at the hospital hadn’t said anything like that at all, and I got a smirk from Will because he knew it.

“You had a really good game tonight,” he said, and that just about sent me to Nirvana. Praise from this guy was like that: something to be treasured. “It will be helpful to have you on the field next weekend.”

“I’ll do my best, Coach,” I promised. It was important to him that I play, but it was even more important to me. Last year, I’d been worried about scouts, hoping I’d get a scholarship at a decent college. I already had offers from UCLA, USC, and Wisconsin, so that wasn’t a huge issue anymore. But this would be a big deal, with over 20,000 fans in the stands, and I’d been really stoked for it.

“You can skip the morning workouts next week, but make sure you’re at the team meetings,” he said.

I couldn’t help but grin at that, at the ability to sleep in an extra hour and a half. “Thanks, Coach.”

“I’ll see you on Monday,” he said, and we ended our call.

“No morning workouts for me this week,” I told Frank with a smile.

“You’ll be fine without them,” he said. We pulled up to our house in Lafayette, and Frank drove up to the front instead of pulling into the garage. “This will make it easier.” He was right. There was a lot less walking if I went through the front door.

I got out, and momentarily wondered how I was going to limp along on my ankle without it hurting like a bitch, when I felt Will slide up under my arm to prop me up. “I’ll help you.”

“I never doubted that for a minute,” I said, shooting him my best smile, the one that could melt even the coldest of hearts most of the time. It was a useful weapon in my charm arsenal. “You always prop me up.”

“Just like you do for me,” he said, as we started walking. We got through the door and Isidore was there to greet me. She was so elegant, and so classy, I could see now where Will got his manners. I’d noticed this summer, when I was home, how I’d started to model her behaviors. It made the rest of my family look pretty boorish.

“I am so sorry you were injured,” she said, as she gave me a kiss on each cheek.

“I’ll be fine in a couple of days,” I said, which was probably a lie, but I didn’t want to make a big deal about this.

“I am glad to hear it,” she said. “I went and got your prescription for pain pills filled.” She went to hand me the bottle, but Will took it instead, since he’d appointed himself as my nurse. That got a gentle smile from her. “I am wondering what your plans were for this evening?”

It had been an early game, and it was just now 5:00. “Don’t know,” I said. “It’s not my birthday, so I don’t get to choose.”

“Dude, we can just do something for dinner here, and hang out. I don’t want you to strain your ankle,” Will said.

“I can go out,” I insisted, but he just shook his head.

“There is a marvelous German restaurant here in town, and unlike Stefan, I have no problem with Germans or their food,” she joked, cracking us up. “Perhaps we can order something, and then we will rope Frank or Darius into going and picking it up?”

“That sounds great,” Will said. I had the feeling he’d agree to just about anything so we could escape to my room. “Better send Frank. Darius will get lost.” We chuckled at that. Darius had a notoriously bad sense of direction.

“Excellent,” she said. “Would you like to order now, or wait until later?”

I was so tempted to just put it off, but Will solved that problem for me. “Let’s knock it out now,” he said. “Do they have wiener schnitzel?”

She glanced at the menu she’d printed out. “They do.”

“I’ll have that,” he said. “You can pick the sides.”

“Same for me,” I agreed.

“Then we will see you both in the dining room at 7:00,” she said. “The rules are not as intense as they are at Escorial, but if you are late, your food will get cold.”

We chuckled at her reference to JP and how uptight he could be. “We’ll be there,” Will promised, and then we were finally free to be alone. He helped me back to my room, talking about stupid stuff as we did.

“I need a shower,” I told him.

“I’ll help you,” he said. He guided me to a chair so I could take off my other cleat and sock, then stood in front of me and stripped off his clothes. I stopped after I took off my shoe and sock and just watched him, appreciating how handsome he was. He had a long, narrow face with pretty sharp features, features that he mostly got from his father. When they stood next to each other, the resemblance was glaringly obvious. He smiled, showing off his perfect white teeth, courtesy of a lot of orthodontia. His hair was short on the sides and a little longer on the top, but that was styled in a spiky, random kind of way. He called it a textured cut. It looked good on him, as if it directed all the attention straight to his green eyes. God, they were beautiful. They were green like a lawn, and were usually twinkling, whether it was from happiness, anger, lust, or just general enthusiasm. He was taller than me, at around 6’2”, and for someone who was sixteen, that usually took one of two shapes: really skinny, or really bulky. Will was neither one of those things. He said he’d hit puberty early, so his body looked more like the college dudes I’d met. In fact, it looked a lot like Brent’s, only a little more muscular. Will was lithe and agile from surfing and riding, and he had decent muscle tone from working out. His huge dick swung between his legs, already on its way to hardness. “What are you looking at?” he asked, in a slightly coquettish, yet slightly embarrassed way.

“Turn around,” I ordered. He gave me an odd look but did as I said. The view from the back was as hot as the view from the front. His slim body tapered down to his ass, which was a work of art. It was thin, but instead of dimples in the cheeks like some guys had, he had indents. I reached out and pulled him back closer to me and started running my hands across those sexy globes, trailing the tips of my fingers down his crack and to his hole. He moaned, and when I leaned forward and started rimming him, his moans got even louder. I worked his cute little pucker, tweaking it with the tip of my tongue, and then diving in for a deeper probe.

He pulled away from me, which was a pretty big surprise, since he loved to be rimmed, and reached into his pants pocket. He handed me a lube packet, and as I took it, my eyes met his, and I could see the crazed look in them. “Fuck me,” he demanded.

I stood up, balancing on one foot as I peeled the nylon and spandex football pants down to my knees, then pulled my jock down just as far. I sat back down and took them the rest of the way off, then lubed up my cock. I made him sit down on it, which was kind of awkward, since I was on a chair. I penetrated him, feeling that amazing sensation of being in his ass, but pulled out and stood up to hop over to the bed. I grabbed my jock and put it behind my back so he couldn’t see it.

As soon as I was on the bed, my ankle problem wasn’t an issue, because now I was kneeling behind him. I slid my dick back into him slowly, then gently started fucking him until he got used to it. I was so into him that I didn’t have much endurance, so I pulled out and flipped him onto his back. That way I could watch him, and I could pause for a second to calm myself down so I didn’t blow too soon. I re-entered him then leaned forward, pinning his legs back as I did, so I could kiss him while I slowly fucked him. Now it was intimate. Now we were making love. The sensations that caused were so much more than the feeling in my dick, and they were just that much more stimulating. I felt my orgasm building. “I’m gonna cum,” I said, not in a shout, but in a firm way that told him nothing, no force on earth, could stop me now.

“Fuck yeah. Fuck yeah,” he said, encouraging me. “Blast your load inside me. Come on, Zach. Fill me up.”

And then I came, and with a howl Frank and Isidore may have heard, I emptied my balls into his ass until I was totally and completely drained. For now. It wouldn’t take me much time to recharge. “Your turn,” I said. I leaned over him, sticking my nasty armpit in his face as I grabbed for the lube, but that seemed to turn him on even more. I tried to pay attention to what he liked. If I’d have done that to him when we’d first started getting into it, he would have been turned off, but now that he was fired up, he loved it.

Making sure that my ankle wasn’t involved, I lubed him up and sat on his massive dick, feeling him stretch me open in a brief rush of pain, since I hadn’t prepped myself for that huge intruder. He gave me a worried look, but I ignored him. Even though I’d just cum, having him inside me was still wonderful. I used my huge thighs as a spring as I started to raise and lower my ass on his dick. Once I got used to him, I leaned forward, and gave him room to thrust up into me. “God, that’s good,” he said.

I reached down and grabbed my jock, and put it on his face, over his nose. “You like the way I smell?” I asked him.

“Oh yeah,” he moaned. “Oh yeah.” And then it was his turn to cum. If my orgasm was monumental, his was just as big. When he was done, he collapsed backward as he relaxed his muscles, panting, even as he tossed my jock off his face. “That was the best birthday present ever.”

“I think so too,” I said.

He suddenly got a severe look, and spoke to me with his commanding voice. “You keep your ass clenched, and don’t let a drop of my load out. I’m gonna feed it to you later.”

I loved it when he did that, and I loved that I could be that open with him to do shit like that with him. “Yes, sir,” I said, even as my dick started to rise again. He giggled, then got up and helped me into the shower.

I had a big shower, so there was plenty of room for both of us. He made me sit on the seat while he sprayed me playfully with the shower wand. Between laughing and horsing around with him in the shower, I was having a hard time not letting his load leak out of me. When we were done, we dried off, and then he helped me back to the bed. Of course, with our teenage libidos, we were already horny again.

He made me lie on my back, and then I felt his fingers starting to probe my ass. I unclenched it, and felt his load start to leak out. He scooped it up with his fingers and then stuck them in my mouth, telling me to lick them dry. God, this turned me on. I slurped the cum off his fingers, even as my cock got hard as a rock. He got some more of his load, and fed it to me, while I sucked it up like a drowning man drinks water. Then he got a really mischievous look on his face, and knelt between my legs. He lowered his head, and I felt his tongue flit around my ass. I completely let go when he did that, releasing what was left of his load into his mouth. “Dude, that was hot,” I said breathlessly.

He didn’t say anything, he just lay on top of me, cramming his hard dick against mine, and kissed me. As he did, he forced the load he’d sucked out of my ass into my mouth. It was all I could do not to shoot again, just from that kiss. “Now you can take care of me,” he said.

He turned around and lowered his ass onto my face, and I was completely and totally crazed. I licked and probed his hole, savoring his moans, and the taste of my own semen as it leaked out of his ass. On and on I went, even when there was no cum left, until he’d had enough. He turned around and lubed me up, then lowered his ass down on my cock again, and took me for another wild ride, one that resulted in yet another amazing orgasm.

When we were done, we lay in bed, side by side, smiling at each other. He leaned in and kissed me in a loving away, a gesture that I returned. When I first started getting with guys, and with him, I had avoided kissing, thinking that if I didn’t kiss a guy, I wasn’t gay. Will had cured me of that, and I was so fucking glad he had. “You are fucking amazing,” I said to him.

“You liked that?” he taunted me lovingly.

“I loved that,” I said.

“Because cum is your favorite food,” he teased. Only that wasn’t it, and it seemed important that I set him straight.

“I like the taste, but that’s not why I like doing that.”

“Why, then?” he asked, since he’d gotten used to thinking I was just turned on by the flavor.

“A dude’s load is like his essence,” I said, trying to explain things. “It’s like the most masculine, most intimate part of him you can get.”

He didn’t give me shit, or try to humiliate me; instead, he just thought about what I said. “Then why don’t you get just as turned on by sucking my dick?”

“Because when a dude shoots his load in my ass, or your ass, it’s about the most intense way for him to deliver his essence.” I waited apprehensively for him to call me on how full of shit I probably was, but he didn’t. “It’s the ultimate expression of a man, to taste the load he’s just fucked into someone.”

“Dude, now that you explain it that way, you make it even hotter,” he said. I just stared at him, totally stunned at how he not only accepted my kinkiness, he embraced it.

“It’s like it energizes me,” I said. “It’s more of an upper than speed, and it builds me up more than steroids ever could.”

“You remember all that shit that Matt went through when Wade dumped him for Alex?” he asked. I nodded, clueless as to why he’d bring that up. “Wade told me that even though he’d been really into Alex, he’d finally decided that it wouldn’t work when he realized he and Alex weren’t sexually compatible.”

“That would suck,” I agreed, thinking about how awful it would be to live with only the promise of mediocre sex to look forward to.

“It would,” he agreed. “With us, that’s never been a problem, and I can’t imagine that it will be.”

I pulled him into a hug. “I love you,” I said, almost desperately, as I held onto him tightly. “I love you so fucking much.”

“I love you too,” he said, clinging to me just as intently. “Just as much.”

I looked beyond him to my clock, and saw that it was already 6:30. “Dude, we have to get ready for dinner.”

“Food?” he asked playfully. He got up and put his clothes back on, then picked some clothes out for me and helped me put them on. Then he helped me hobble to the dining room, which was empty.

“We’re early,” I said unnecessarily.

“Don’t want cold food,” Will joked. At 7:00 exactly, Frank, Isidore, and Darius came in, carrying the food that Frank and Darius had gotten. We went through the containers and sorted everything out, and Isidore made us scoop the food onto real plates.

“Dude, you were incredible,” Darius said to me, making me grin and blush a little bit. “I’m psyched to go to Hawaii next weekend. You gonna play?”

“Unless I’m on crutches, I’m playing,” I swore.

“You need to be careful not to get injured any worse,” Frank cautioned. “You don’t want to blow your whole season.”

“Yeah, but the game in Hawaii, and our game against Long Beach Poly, are the biggest ones of the season,” I said. “I don’t want to miss those.”

After we finished dinner, everyone but me cleared off the table and took the plates into the kitchen. Being crippled had its benefits. Then everyone but Isidore came out and sat back down. She returned shortly after that, carrying a birthday cake for Will. Darius pulled out a lighter and lit all sixteen candles, and we sang that idiotic birthday song for Will. He grinned and blushed as we did, because he really wasn’t into being the center of attention, at least not for something like this.

“And now it is time for presents,” Isidore said. She nodded at Frank, and he got up and left, then returned carrying a big, thin package. Will unwrapped it, and it was a really awesome painting. It was very modern. “I thought that would work either in Hawaii, or in your room.”

“This is kick-ass!” he said enthusiastically. He paused to admire it, and its abstract pattern. I’d seen this when they’d bought it, and thought it was just perfect for him and his tastes. I was right. “Thank you so much!”

“You are very welcome,” Isidore said with a soft smile.

“This one’s from me,” Darius said. He gave Will a box, and when he unwrapped and opened it up, he found all kinds of driving shit in it. Driving shoes, a Ferrari shirt and hat, and a really trick Ferrari keychain. At the bottom of the box was another box, and when Will opened it up, it turned out to be a big box of Magnum condoms. “You’re showboating, so you may need those,” he joked.

I felt myself seething with jealousy, but managed to control it. “Maybe,” Will said, and winked at me. I tried not to let the condoms ruin my whole mood, but it was tough. “And this one is from you?” he asked, picking up the present that I’d gotten him.

“It is,” I said.

He opened the card up first, and read it. “Will, so you can always find your way back to me. Love, Zach.” He looked at my quizzically. “What is it?”

“Open it up,” I said.

He tore open the package and pulled out a jewelry box, then opened that. He pulled out the necklace I’d gotten him. It had a woven leather strap that was long enough so it wouldn’t be uncomfortable to wear, with a pendant attached to it. The pendant should hang just below his nipples. It looked like a thick coin with a hole in the middle that the leather went through. “What is this?”

“It’s a compass,” I said. I showed him how the two top parts of the ‘coin’ opened up to form the face of a compass.

“Dude, this is the coolest thing!” Will exclaimed.

“Look at the dial,” I said. “Notice anything different?”

He studied it for a minute, and then his massive smile broke out. “Awesome!” he said.

“What?” Darius asked.

Will handed the pendant to him. “Look at the ‘W’,” he said. Where the ‘W’ for west was, I’d had them inscribe a ‘Z’ over it as well, so the Z and W were basically intertwined.

“That is pretty trick,” Darius pronounced.

“That is an amazing present,” Will said. “Thank you so much.”

I blushed a little bit, not just at his words, but at the emotion that was behind it. “Not easy to find something for a guy who has everything.”

“You did really well,” he said. “Really well.”

“Thanks,” I said. He put it over his neck and we hung out with everyone for a bit, but he kept pulling it out and looking at it.

“Dude, if you don’t mind, I think I’m going to head back to LA,” Darius said to Will.

“That’s fine,” Will said. “Thanks for coming back with me.”

“Turned out to be a fun trip,” he said. He called a cab, and after that got there and picked him up, Will and I escaped back to my room.

“I cannot believe you got me this,” he said, as he held the pendant in his hands. “It had to cost a fortune.”

“You’re worth it,” I said, because he was right. It had set me back a couple of thousand bucks, but I was pretty good with money, and I’d saved up almost enough cash to do it. Frank had loaned me the balance.

We stripped off our clothes, and I made love to him. I liked to bottom way more than I liked to top, but I knew he liked it too, and since it was his birthday, it only seemed fair. After we were finished, we lay on our backs, side by side, panting. When we’d recovered, he rolled over onto his side and ran his fingers gently across my pecs in a loving way. “My last two birthdays sucked. This one made up for them.”

“Oh yeah?” I asked.

“Yeah,” he said. “I got to spend it with the guy I love, and I got some really kick ass presents.”

“What did you get?” We hadn’t talked about it.

“Alright, in order of coolness, the first thing is this pendant. Damn. This is the bomb.”

“I’m glad you like it,” I said, grinning like an idiot. “What’s next?”

“It’s a toss-up. Dad gave me his Ferrari, and Stef gave me a building in Chicago.”

“You think the pendant is cooler than a Ferrari?” I challenged. “Dude, you’re fucked up.”

“It’s cooler than the Ferrari because you gave it to me,” he said. “I love you.”

“I love you too,” I replied, just as earnestly, and I meant it. “What building did Stef give you?”

“The one that has Spartacus in it, and has the apartment Matt was going to live in,” he said.

“Oh,” I said. “Good thing Darius got you the Magnums.” I hadn’t meant for that last sentence to slip out.

“I haven’t done anything wrong,” he said self-righteously.

“I’m sorry,” I told him, hoping he’d just drop the subject, but I could tell it wasn’t going to work. “It’s not your fault I get jealous.”

“I get jealous too,” he said.

“I didn’t say that you didn’t,” I snapped, much too nastily. This was not going the way I wanted it to go.

“So now that you decided to become a celibate monk, I’m supposed to do the same thing?” he asked. He was getting pissed off.

I rolled onto my side so I could look at him, and try to force him to calm down by looking at him intently. “I’m not asking you to do that, and I didn’t say that you did anything wrong.” He just looked at me, waiting for more. “I’m not mad at you, or upset. It’s just that it makes me jealous that you’re with other guys.”

“I get jealous too,” he repeated. I almost laughed at that, because he said it like it was some big admission, when he was just as possessed by the green monster as I was.

“I know you mess around with other dudes,” I explained. “And the trade off is that I can’t be with you like I want to because of football. So it sucks for both of us, but you’re worth it.”

He nodded. “I’m sorry I got bitchy. Even though I know it’s OK, when I’m with another guy, I feel guilty. I was taking that out on you.”

“When’s the last time you were with someone else?” I asked, even though I shouldn’t have, and even though I hadn’t wanted to.

“Last Wednesday,” he said. That would have been September 11, and that reminded me of the demons he’d had to battle. “You want to know about it?”

“I think so,” I grumbled. I did, and I didn’t. I was curious, but I didn’t want to be jealous.

“There’s this dude who’s a friend of Matt and Wade. He played football at Stanford. He lost his boyfriend during the attacks, the fireman I saw going down the stairs,” he explained. I remembered that story, and I’d actually seen a picture of that guy.

“Someone has a thing for football players,” I teased.

“Someone does,” he agreed. “It was nice, and it made things better for both of us. But when he walked away from me, he walked kind of like you, and he reminded me of you.”

“He probably walked funny because you fucked him,” I teased, trying to keep the mood lighter.

“No, I bottomed for him. But after that, I realized that regardless of who I get off with, I want to be with you. That’s when I decided to fly out here for my birthday.” He gave me a really loving kiss. “I could be with just you. You’re more than enough to make me happy.”

I couldn’t stop my grin, but then I erased it and spoke sincerely. “I’m sorry. It’s good the way things are. It’s just that I get really jealous sometimes. It’s my problem, not yours.”

“How do I make it better?”

“I don’t know,” I admitted. “If you go out and don’t tell me, I’ll be curious, but if you tell me, I’m jealous. I’m fucked either way, but I think I’d rather know.”

“I’ve only fucked around with three guys since last Christmas,” he said.

I stared at him, blinking in surprise. I thought he was a major slut, and I’d figured he’d have scored some serious dick by now. “Three?”

“Three,” he confirmed. “Want to know who they are?”

“Fine,” I agreed.

“Kai, the guy in New York, and a bartender in Chicago,” he said.

I could totally see why he’d get with Kai. He was a pretty cool dude, but he wasn’t a threat to us. I also got the football player in New York. He wasn’t a threat either. “A bartender?”

“His name is Devon. He’s blond, he’s handsome, and he’s fun,” Will explained. Only I could tell that this guy wasn’t a threat to us either. He put his hand on my bicep and stroked my dragon. “They were fun, but I love you.”

And then I got it. Those other guys didn’t matter, in the greater scheme of things. No matter who he hopped in bed with, I had his heart, and he had mine.