Confounded: Part III - 19. Chapter 12

--==Mitchell’s POV==--

It was about three in the afternoon when we pulled out of the driveway, Kit, Mischa and the kids turned left as we went right, honking to each other and to Dad who was waving at the front door.

“He’s definitely a fan now,” I murmured, sitting back, relaxing.

Tom grinned at me, speedily taking turns, not even using the navigator to steer us to my house; in a private moment, we agreed to go to Venice again for the night but I wanted a change of clothes and bring my car; I didn’t see the need for him constantly playing taxi, though he indicated it to not being a problem. Apparently, he still knew the way from here.

“Not my fault. The man knows his music.”

“Mhm, and showing off that you met McCartney and Paul Anka and Barry Manilow pretty much sealed the deal.”

“Nothing wrong with dropping a name. Sometimes,” he grinned.
Depends on the name, jeez. By the time he was done, my father was downright starstruck because he’d had the pictures to prove it, too.
“If any of them ever come to LA, I’ll ask your dad to come meet them.”

“He’ll get a coronary.”
Tom chuckled.

“Nah, they are just like you and me, y’know. Sit on the toilet and stink it up, just like us plebs.”

“Not sure if you are allowed to call yourself a pleb, now.”
He gave me the finger, then concentrated on driving for a while. Occasionally, his eyes darted over.

“Mitch?”
I rolled my head on the headrest to look at him.

“Hmm?”

“Did he say anything? About us?”

“We spoke about it for a minute or two.”
I smiled.
“Trying to make a good impression, were you?”

I could see his cheeks color a little.

“Well, apart from you, I was always a little intimidated by him. I remember him as very grumpy, at times. He didn’t really talk to me.”

“He thought you were a delinquent, back then. He wasn’t far from the truth, was he? He knew why you were staying with us and the explanation back then wasn’t very...flattering.”

“Oh, I bet. Thought as much, even then. I remember feeling left, I dunno…outside, back then, when we were there?”
That couldn’t have been a nice feeling, especially as a young adult, mentally struggling.

“He did say he thought you had turned into a decent young man now, though.”
He beamed at that.

“Good to hear. I liked being over there with all you guys today.”
So did I.

“We were happy to have you. What did you think of the service?”

“Not as austere and serious as I’d imagined.”

“Still expecting hellfire and damnation?”
He chuckled, slowing down for a stop sign.

“Yeah. Hard to let go of old memories, but I enjoyed it. It wasn’t as religious as I thought it would be.”

“That might have to do with the way you view religion? Personally, I experience religion as a guideline to live my life. Values, thoughts, viewpoints; an anchor, always there when you’re lost or afraid.”
He nodded.

“I guess I can understand that. Some need that.”

“And some don’t, or think they don’t, but I think we all need it at some point. It helped me a lot, like when Kit was born, and when Taylan died.”

“How so?”

“I didn’t need to be told what to think or do, but I did need to know I wasn’t alone. Church helped me.”
He concentrated on driving for a while, clearly processing that. I was tempted to ask him if he’d consider going again but opted to wait, letting him finish his thoughts about it.

“I’ve been to a few services over the years,” he spoke up quite suddenly, when I didn’t expect anything to come from him just yet, “I always felt like crap, after. This is the first time I walked out and felt upbeat.”
I guess he processed rather quickly. Hmm…

“Sounds like you went to some of those hellfire and damnation services,” I smiled. “Some churches do, I guess. There’s extremism in everything, that includes Christianity and Orthodoxy as well. We sometimes forget that.”

“Too true.”
He grinned.
“Your church wasn’t so bad. I could see myself going there again.”

“See? You’re not a total loss yet,” I chuckled.

“Nah, once every ten years I can manage.”

“Jackass,” I muttered. I walked straight into that one.

He steered into my street and parked in front of the gate, waiting as it slowly swung open, then drove up to the house.

**********

I quickly changed into more casual clothing and packed a few things in a small travelbag; some underwear, deodorant, my razor and cream, trimmer, that sort of stuff. When I returned to the living room, Tom was nowhere in sight but the slider door was open. Stepping onto the terrace, I spotted him strolling through the yard, a water bottle in one hand and a cigarette in the other. When he noticed me, he came over.

“I forgot how big this property actually is! Wow! This yard is perfect for a dog.”
He finished his water but left a little behind, then put the cigarette in there.
“You should really think about it. He can run out here, spend his energy.”

“So could you,” I chuckled, causing him to laugh.

“Yeah, I know; I’m an energy ball. Got everything?”
I lifted the bag.
“Alright. Ready to go? I wanna get out of these clothes, it’s hot. That pool looks really nice…”

“We could eat here, instead?” I offered. Why not; thanks to him, I had a full fridge and freezer. “Then you can take a swim, if you li…okay! I guess that’s a yes.”

His shoes went flying and he was already unbuttoning his shirt before the final word of that left my mouth. His pants and undies went next, both at the same time and he was hopping to the edge of the pool while taking off his socks, barely getting the last one off before tumbling ungraciously into the water with a massive splash. Impulsive idiot!
When he came up, he let out a great contented sigh.

“Oh, that’s good! Man, I was sweating like a glassblower’s ass!”
Snickering, I picked up his clothes and laid them on one of the sunbathing chairs while he began laps, then went to get some towels for him. When I returned, he was resting his arms on the edge, panting.
“Ugh, so good. I wish I had a pool.”

“You got the biggest one, right outside your place,” I pointed out; he made a face.

“Meh, I hate swimming in the ocean. Well, the one here. Put me in the Maldives, I’ll go swimming.” I was about to say; when we went to the Seychelles, I clearly remember the boys cavorting in the ocean. So had I and so had Taylan. “Hey, you know what would be a good idea? A cabana, right there.” He pointed to the end of the pool, where the yard began, to the right of that. “Put some couches in there, minibar, BBQ. And on the other side, a little place for towels, pool maintenance crap and whatnot.”

I’d never thought of it. House stuff had basically been Taylan’s field of expertise, changing furniture and having painters come in every so often. When I bought it, I only maintained it as was. The only thing I ever had installed was the wine cellar and electric doors for the garages.

Hmm, his was not a bad idea, as ideas went. I should spruce up the place a bit. Maybe put in solar panels; it was a good investment as well; if I ever would want to sell the place, which I doubted very much but if…then it would only add to the attraction of the property.

“I’ll look into it.”
He grinned up at me as I brought the towel. He slipped into the pool again. There was a certain glance of mischief in those pretty eyes of his as he treaded water, staying close to the edge. He was up to no good.
“Don’t even think about it,” I warned.

“Oh come on; the waters’ great. And no one can see us.”
I groaned; what was it with him, that my willpower just…dissipated?

“No hanky panky!” I warned, taking off the thin linen shirt I’d put on not ten minutes earlier. He just pushed off and floated away on his back, giving me a full show of himself. God, he was perfect.

“No…”

“...promises,” I finished, nodding and chuckling, undressing. Ahuh. I remembered that text of his and what they’d been up to, in here.

Discarding the rest of my clothes, I walked to the edge of the pool, accompanied by a wolf whistle from him and dove in. Ah, yes; he was right, the water was great!
When I broke the surface close to him, I opened my eyes and saw him grinning, still floating on his back, completely spreadeagled, watching me.

“Welcome to the party! We got wine, food and relaxation. Life doesn’t get any better than that.”
I snickered.

Approaching him, I gave him a little push so he floated further in; he sighed deeply, sounding very relaxed indeed. And from what I could see, he had no tan lines, whatsoever. I hadn’t noticed that, the previous night.

“Ah man, I could do this all day. Get me a cocktail, I’m not moving.”

“Yes, sir. Would there be anything else, sir?” I softly laughed, giving him another push, sending him yet further, slightly spinning.

“I want one with those umbrellas.”

“I’ll get right on that.”
He made a dismissive gesture, very arrogant.

“Yes yes, make it quick, James.”
Pffft!

Instead of giving him another push, I yanked his foot so that he went under. When he came back up, sputtering, I pointed towards the living room.

“Go get it yourself, brat.”
He grinned and swam over, wrapping his arms around my neck; a second later, his legs around my waist, making me tread water for the both of us.

“Can’t blame a guy for tryin’.”
Leaning back, he went under for a second and then back up, his hair slicked back smoothly. It was longer now, covering his neck.
“Ahh, seriously; it doesn't get any better than this. Skinny dipping on a late Sunday afternoon after church; I have a whole new stash of hail mary’s to waste. Let’s go sin.”
Laughing, I squeezed his firm butt.
“Ooh, someones’ roaring to go!”

“Behave,” I smiled, extending my arm again because that had almost caused us to go under. I steered toward the shallower end of the pool so I could at least stand.

“What if I don’t wanna behave? What are you gonna do about it?” He wiggled his eyebrows.
Then he inhaled sharply, “Oh! Hey, you wouldn’t happen to have condoms here, right?”
Chuckling, I shook my head.

“No, I had no need for them but there’s a 24/7 pharmacy down the road.”
Moving in closer, he went for a hot kiss.

“We don’t have to use them, you know. I’m clean…”
Oh, stop young man. Stop tempting me.

I tapped his nose chidingly. ”Don’t be naughty…”

He pouted. “Hey, I had a full workup two months ago. John insists on me going every year. I think it’s even in our agreement. And, for full disclosure; I’m no Slutty McFuckmenow. The last time I had sex was seven months ago and we did use condoms.”

I smirked at the ‘Slutty’ comment and pressed a kiss on that pout. “I believe you. I do. And you already know I haven’t been with anyone for the last three years. So how about this; we both go in and get tested. Until then, we’ll use them?”

The corners of his mouth curled up. “Alright, that’s fair. I’ll schedule an appointment asap.”

“I’ll see if I can find an opening in a month or two.”

“Dude, you’re such an asshole,” he muttered. “You know what? You do you. And I’m gonna make it as hard for you as I can. You’re goin down, man. You’ll stick me with your needle before they stick one in you, if you wait that long. Trust me.”

Chuckling, I drew him closer. “I can’t wait.”

**********

While Tom made dinner, I took a quick shower to wash off the chlorine from the pool and once done, I returned to the kitchen and got instructions to watch the food on the stove while he took his. He’d been cooking while wrapped in a towel. It was way too big for him and he looked very cute while doing it, almost tripping over the towel at times.

When he returned, (over)dressed again, he finished up the meal and served dinner, something-something beef carpaccio as an appetizer and pasta (I had stirred the sauce as instructed) for the main course. I was amazed at how quickly he made it and yes, again, it tasted absolutely fantastic. He asked if I had Italian wine, a specific red (I was amazed he knew that one); I didn’t, I was sad to say. I’d have to ask Mischa if he knew any. We went with a light one from Napa.

“Where did you learn to cook so well?”

“I took classes and a friend of mine has a restaurant in New York. I spent more time in that kitchen than I did in the restaurant itself. And also, what’re you gonna do; just put on a program on TV and follow instructions while you make it? Alright, don’t answer that; that’s what I’m pushing you to do. And you should! But all you need is time, really. When I was with Alex, before my career took off, I had that time to spend, so when he came home, he got something new on his plate, every night.”

“I’ll never be as good as you.”

“Ha! You just watch and learn. Trust me; before you know it, you’ll have home cooked meals coming out of those hands in no time.”
I doubted it but appreciated the trust and helped clear the plates.

“We could just stay here,” I offered, not really looking forward to a drive to Venice and a drive alone, at that. Tom made a face.

“We could but then I’m gonna have to return early tomorrow, so Silver gets her food. I can’t call my girl now; it’s too short notice. I doubt she would mind but I think it’s kinda rude to do that, just for convenience.”
He hesitated.
“You don’t wanna go? I mean, you don’t have to, if you don’t want to. But I kinda have to…I don’t wanna leave Silver alone. I never do, not without saying goodbye. I can’t.”

“Nor would I want you to. We can go, I just don’t look forward to driving there alone,” I smiled. I liked that he didn’t want to leave the cat to her own devices without saying goodbye. It was sweet.
He grinned.

“You can always drive with me.”
Yes, yes…I already knew he preferred that; he admitted to that, quite honestly, so we’d extend this whole thing once again and me depending on him to drive me back. He didn’t like saying goodbyes. He hated it.

“Then I have no car to get back here.”

“Use mine.”

“No charging capability at my house.”

“My car can go quite a bit without charging…”
I didn’t trust that yet. I needed more time to look into that. Talk to a dealer, get documentation. He rolled his eyes.

“It’s fine! The car won’t quit on you!”

“So you say. What if I break down on the highway? Ever heard of an extension cord two miles long?”
He went full modern on me, closed eyes and mouthing ‘really?’ to the ceiling.

“It’s perfectly safe!
Nope. Documentation. In hand. Explanation, from a dealer, to my face. Otherwise; no dice.
I shook my head. Not happening. He growled in frustration.

“Jesus, you’re a fuckin’ dinosaur.”
I could care less. Documentation. Dealer. Guarantees. Until then: nope.
“Nightmare of a man!”
I picked up his keys and held them out, taking mine in the other.

“You, jacked up hoover. Me, gas powered mean machine. Move.”