Porcupines - 8. Chapter 8 - Haunted

Chapter 8 - Haunted

Dylan wiped his eyes. The memories were so strong yet he knew they were the past. Ron was gone and no one or nothing could bring him back. But, right next to him was a man who really liked him. Chuck was a man who somehow reminded him of Ron. He didn’t know how, not yet. Chuck gently pulled Dylan’s head to his shoulder and his arms surrounded the other man with his caring.

“I need you to take me home and hold me,” Dylan said looking deeply into Chuck’s icy blues. “Please?”

“Of course I will. Thanks for telling me about him,” Chuck said softly. “I’m yours.”

“You are, aren’t you,” Dylan whispered. “Let’s go.”

Once back at Dylan’s apartment, the two sat next to each other on the couch. Chuck held Dylan tight and Dylan let him. He looked up at Chuck’s face and leaned up to kiss him. They kissed slowly at first, relishing each other’s mouths and tongues. It began to get more intense. They couldn’t get close enough. Dylan needed to get closer and the space felt too far.

“Take me to the bedroom Chuck,” Dylan said. “I want to feel you next to me.”

Chuck pulled away and took Dylan’s face in his hands again. “I don’t want this to just be a fling.”

“We’ll just lie together. I need you close to me. I need this Chuck. I’m so lonely,” Dylan said, begging.

Chuck couldn’t look at Dylan’s face and those pleading eyes and say no. This wasn’t something he wanted to do. He feared this was just a passing thing. Dylan would tire of him soon enough. The only thing that changed his mind was those blue eyes, so bright, so needy. He couldn’t resist in spite of the Vow, which he’d basically broken anyway. In for a penny, in for a pound, Chuck stood up and reached out a hand to Dylan. He put his arm around him and led him to the bedroom.

Dylan jumped past Chuck and onto the bed. His eyes glistening, he reached both arms out to Chuck. He climbed up next to him. They both rolled into each other’s arms. They resumed making out. What had been a hot necking session on the couch was becoming more passionate now. Dylan moved to Chuck’s neck and began licking and suckling. Chuck reached beneath Dylan’s shirt and caressed his furry stomach. Both moaned and tight little cries of pleasure filled the room.

Dylan was the first to find his lover’s weak point. He got Chuck’s shirt unbuttoned and had rolled his nipples between his thumb and fingers. Chuck arched against Dylan’s front and loudly groaned. He writhed under Dylan’s attention to his nubs. “Oh my Gawd,” Chuck said and bit Dylan’s neck. This made Dylan cry out and play with him even harder, with more purpose. Both squirmed with excitement over the other’s efforts.

Both men were losing all sense of control. Their libidos were overtaking their reason centers. Dylan was too far gone and Chuck was almost there. Chuck’s last prefrontal cortical thought was a prayer to his Nanna. ‘Please don’t hate me for breaking The Vow. I think I love him.’ Dylan licked his ear and Chuck’s sense of propriety disappeared.

Somehow, both men lost their shirts, their pants, and their boxers. Now they were a mass of arms and legs and stickiness everywhere. Tongues licked salty skin, sweet nectar, and frothy saliva in a frenzied state. Chuck rolled on top of Dylan and instinctively ground his crotch into his partner’s. Neither man was in control, especially Dylan.

They did, as they said on the ‘Big Bang Theory,’ the dance with no pants. Afterwards, they separated breathing heavily.

“How did you learn how to do that?” Dylan asked him.

Chuck leaned over, kissed him again and brushed Dylan’s sweat soaked hair to the side. “Hun, that’s just the beginning. You inspire me.” Chuck fell down beside Dylan. He had caught his breath and regained his senses. A sense of belonging and of inner warmth enveloped him. Chuck would never say it, but at this moment, he knew he loved Dylan with all his heart. He’d given him his soul. Was this a mistake? Would he be left without a soul? He hoped not. He’d bet his life on this.

Dylan raised himself on an elbow. He reached over and traced the line of his lover’s jaw. “Nobody, and I mean nobody, has rocked my world like that.”

“I bet you say that to all the guys,” Chuck smiled and snickered. Dylan gave him a stink eye but couldn’t keep it. He smiled and play punched his lover.

“You are a keeper,” Dylan said giving him a kiss.

“I hope so,” Chuck said looking at Dylan’s swollen lips. “I really hope so.”

“Will you stay the night?” Dylan said. He had wanted Chuck here to comfort him. He now couldn’t imagine sleeping alone. After the wild rendezvous, he couldn’t stand being without Chuck at his side. It wasn’t even having a warm body. He wanted Chuck’s scent on him, next to him, around him.

“I would love to stay. I don’t work until tomorrow afternoon. How about you?” Chuck said whirling chest hair around his finger. He’d never thought much about chest hair until Dylan. With him, it was like an extra toy to play with.

“I don’t work until tomorrow night either. We can sleep late and go get breakfast in the morning. What do you think?”

“I could make you breakfast.” Chuck said gently tracing the other man’s chest muscled. Dylan was getting excited again from his actions.

“Wouldn’t it be easier to go out?” Dylan asked and moved Chuck’s face so he could see those icy blues.

“I like to cook,” Chuck said. “And it would be a lot cheaper. I don’t make a lot of money.”

“I’ll buy,” Dylan said with a frown. What could this mean? Was there already trouble brewing between them? He hoped not.

“No. Forget what I said. We can go out.” Chuck said smiling but Dylan saw something there.

“I’m just pretty picky about my food,” Dylan said and thought of Ron’s rubbery eggs and undercooked bacon. Gawd, that man had trouble making toast.

Chuck nibbled on his fingernail. “I am a good cook. I want to make you breakfast. Let’s see what you have,” he said and gave Dylan’s hairy white ass a good hard slap. He jumped off the bed and slipped on his boxers gesturing for his lover to follow him.

Dylan groaned inwardly. ‘What kind of food will I need to endure to keep that action?’ he thought. He was nervous but figured it couldn’t be too bad. If Chuck claimed he could cook, perhaps it would be fine. Dylan certainly was no chef.

Chuck marched into the kitchen, his cute little butt jiggling under the thin cotton undies. His back was perfectly smooth and so tight. A faint glimmer of the light fuzz coating his skin glowed in the kitchen light. Chuck didn’t have a great deal of hair, but what he had looked so inviting in Dylan’s eyes. He bent down and looked in the fridge. Dylan watched him in the dim light and felt arousal starting again. What was going on with him? He wasn’t normally this frisky. Chuck seemed to bring out his inner beast. The other man’s words brought him back to the present.

“We have eggs, almost a whole dozen. There is ham. I see some bread. A lemon. Butter. I see some chives. What do you have chives for?” Chuck asked perplexed.

“I watched Ina Garten talk about fresh chives on the Food Channel,” Dylan said. “I was going to make twice baked potatoes but never did,” he added in a whisper.

Chuck checked the freezer. Shook his head. Then he looked at the pantry closet. “Oh, you’ve got potatoes too!” he said excited.

“What does that mean?” Dylan asked, confused by the array of ingredients.

“I’m making you Eggs Benedict with hash browns for breakfast.”

“Yeah right,” Dylan said into the air.

“I like to cook,” Chuck said and tapped his lover’s shoulder. “I think you’ll like what I make.”

“I await an award winning breakfast tomorrow. After a session like we just had, I’ll be starving tomorrow,” Dylan said and then rubbed his bruised face.

“Is your face okay?” Chuck asked. “I didn’t hurt you did I?”

“Nope, I’m fine. Like I said, it doesn’t hurt when you’re kissing me,” Dylan teased and grabbed Chuck for another kiss to prove it. Dylan grabbed his lover’s arm and pulled on him. He then turned and ran back down the hall. Chuck wasn’t far behind as he raced his half-naked lover to the bedroom.

Their second time that night was more loving, but oddly enough didn’t take as long. They knew which buttons to push and which ones didn’t matter. The two men were communicating on another level. But, not just during sex. Afterwards, they seemed to complete each other’s sentences as they talked about mundane things. Both felt safe together, for some reason. Neither could figure out why.

What was more important for them was a sense of trust. Chuck believed Dylan liked him. Dylan had faith Chuck wouldn’t hurt him. Both felt this wasn’t just a fling. This was moving beyond that. It was scary but scary was also kind of exciting.

“What are you thinking about?” Chuck asked quietly. He brushed Dylan’s hair back with a finger.

“I’m just thinking about how infectious your smile is,” Dylan said grinning.

“I was thinking the same about you.”

“We’re kind of moving fast,” Dylan said. “But for some reason it doesn’t really terrify me like it should.”

Chuck heard the deeper meaning in Dylan’s statement. Dylan also had fears. For whatever reason, Chuck didn’t make him nervous. He wondered why. “I’m feeling pretty good about this thing too,” he finally said.

“My brother said I might be healing, you know, after Ron died,” Dylan said soberly. “I didn’t think I’d feel like this again.”

“I’m glad it’s me,” Chuck said after hesitating. “Just so you know, I haven’t felt this close to a guy ever.”

“Really?” Dylan asked his eyes looking deeply into Chuck’s icy blues.

“No. I know it’s happening too fast but I guess I’m just a sucker for someone as handsome as you,” Chuck smiled.

“I could get used to this,” Dylan said but at the same time wanted to take it back.

“I can’t look at you enough,” Chuck said but his eyes were getting droopy. So were Dylan’s. Soon, both fell fast asleep.

One slept quietly. The other didn’t.

Chuck was released from his worries.

Dylan had a dream. Not an ordinary dream. Not a dream that would make one uncomfortable or happy. It was a nightmare that seized him by the throat.

The field was green and lush. That didn’t matter or even register. The flowers were unimportant. Ahead of him was a hairless man who was beckoning to him. Dylan wanted to catch him. He felt so loved, his heart felt like bursting. This was crazy. He had Ron. Ron loved him. Ron made him feel complete. Ron would rock his world. Who was this man who seduced him?

Ron loved him. He was standing naked, strawberry blond, young, freckled and with a look on his face you couldn’t ignore. Ron was his, but he wasn’t. Ron wanted to turn Dylan into his partner. But, that damn interloper wanted to make Ron go away.

Ron wouldn’t. He showed up in the green and lush field. His face was smashed like at the hospital. It was nothing but pulp. Little red drops colored with yellow and white flesh dripped from his face. Dylan couldn’t stop crying. This was Ron. He loved me. I loved him. It wasn’t fair. He made me whole. That fucking hairless man was trying to take me away from him.

Dylan cried out in his terror.

Chuck grabbed and held onto him. Dylan awoke, worried about what he’d said out loud. Chuck didn’t say anything. He just held him. Dylan could feel his warm body around him, fending off the terror. Dylan tried not to think about Ron. He was cold. He was in the grave. ‘I’m not,’ Dylan thought and held Chuck right back.

There is nothing happy in this world.

Chuck murmured in his ear, “It’s okay. It was just a dream. I’m here for you. I’m here for you. Shhhh.”

Dylan finally relaxed into his arms. After a time, Chuck fell asleep again but Dylan couldn’t. That picture of Ron’s ruined face, crushed, flat, so dead haunted him. He couldn’t get that image out of his brain. Dylan turned around in Chuck’s arms and looked at him. Chuck shifted as Dylan moved but kept holding him, possessively.

In sleep, Chuck’s face was so open, kind. He was smiling and mewling a little. A tiny speck of foam was in the corner of his mouth and it didn’t look silly or ridiculous. It looked like he was the happiest man in the world lying there in Dylan’s arms.

An unwelcome thought welled within Dylan. ‘What am I doing in bed with this stranger? I don’t know him. He had just hours before made love with this guy and he don’t know him. What had Dylan become?’

Dylan didn’t want this man, this stranger. He wanted Ron back. It hurt so much he wanted to get out of bed and scream at this stranger in his bed. He couldn’t just lie here, and be what? Loved? Cared for?

Chuck had him trapped. Dylan couldn’t get away from him. Did he want to? Was this perfect stranger now his future? Doubts and hopes spun around in his head. ‘What am I going to do?’ Dylan asked but no one answered him.

His night terrors began to ease. This was a dear, sweet man. This was a man who made him feel so good. Who knows what’s next? Perhaps, Chuck is his future.

Still wary, but feeling more calm, Dylan fell back asleep. This time, no nightmares awaited him.

For now, the sandman was kind and let him rest. For now.