The Island's Secret - 5. Sunday

I woke up at seven to the sound of Asher in the shower, and I went into my room to grab some clothes for us. I looked through all my things before deciding on what I’d bring for Asher. I picked my favorite shorts, which would look really good on his ass, and a tight shirt I had that would show off his muscles and the grey in his eyes. When I was satisfied, I walked into the bathroom, leaving a towel and the clothes I’d picked for him by the shower while I brushed my teeth.

I grabbed an extra toothbrush for him, and set it on the side of the sink. I put my toothbrush away just as the water stopped, and I stared at the shower through the mirror as the curtain opened. Asher leaned out, grabbing the towel, and my eyes began to devour him. I could only see half his chest, and nothing below the waist, but I could see the hint of his hip, and that small amount of bare flesh was the sexiest thing I’d ever seen. It was slightly lighter than his normal tanned skin, and it looked as soft as silk. Asher leaned back into the shower and closed the curtain again so he could dry off, and my brain slowly began to work again. It stopped all over again when he leaned out once more, grabbing the clothes I’d set out, and I could see a large part of his thigh. His leg was muscled, and I couldn’t see any hair from where I was. I realized yet again that he was a wet dream walking, but then he closed the curtain to put on my clothes.

If this is how it’ll go every morning, I’ll be brain-dead by the end of the summer!

I managed to compose myself before Asher stepped out of the shower, looking stunning in the clothes I’d given him. It didn’t help my thought process at all when he grinned at me.

“Thanks,” he said. “I didn’t want to wake you up, but I thought I should get ready. We’ve got a lot to do today.”

And none of it is what I really want to do right now, I thought sadly. I wish I could make the time he took to put on those clothes a waste.

Asher raised an eyebrow, wondering why I wasn’t responding, and I fought against a blush with all my willpower.

“Sorry,” I said. “I can’t think in the morning. You’re right.” Yeah, it’s because of the morning, I thought. Nothing to do with your hot ass in those shorts.

Asher laughed, and walked over to the sink to brush his teeth while I got into the shower. I put a towel and my clothes outside the shower, and got in. I took off my clothes, throwing them outside, and started the water. I showered quickly, pointedly ignoring my raging erection, and put on my clothes. I walked out of the bathroom and found Asher looking through the pictures again. He continued looking through them as I gathered my phone, wallet, and camera, and only stopped when it was time to go.

“I can’t get over how good of a photographer you are,” he said. “Those pictures look like they were taken by a professional.”

“Thanks,” I said, pleased. “But a lot of that is the camera.”

He shook his head. “I know enough about photography to recognize that it’s not just the camera,” he said. “You take the pictures quickly, but you always frame them well, the focus is always perfect, and you always know what angle to take it from.”

This time, I couldn’t control my blush, and Asher grinned at me. “Thanks,” I said.

Asher nodded, satisfied that he’d made me accept his compliment, and we went outside.

“Let’s just take the dirt bike,” Asher suggested. “That way we have an excuse if we don’t want to bring anybody we meet back here.”

No problems with me, I thought, imagining how close we’d get sharing the dirt bike. “You clever bastard,” I said, grinning at him. He grinned back, and we got on the bike. I let him drive, because I didn’t want to try to drive with him distracting me. I soon regretted my decision when he narrowly missed a tree and drove through a bush.

“Sorry,” he said, embarrassed. “I’m not usually this bad.”

“It’s fine,” I laughed. “We’re not hurt or anything.”

He paid more attention to driving, and we made it to the road alive. He gunned it down the road, heading for town as fast as we could go, and I laughed in delight. We raced down the road at a hundred and twenty kilometers per hour, but we slowed to sixty as we came near the town. We entered the town and drove around, looking at everything, for a few minutes. We soon realized that there were no more than thirty houses, a restaurant, and a general store/gas station. We stopped in front of the restaurant, called ‘Jason’s’, which claimed to serve breakfast, lunch, and dinner, and I got off. Luckily, my boner had gone down to a more manageable half-mast. I took a picture of Asher on the dirt bike, and he grinned.

“You’re going to fill your entire floor before you’ve been here for two weeks,” he warned.

I laughed. “I’m not putting all of them up. Just the good ones.”

He grinned again. “I thought you weren’t putting all of them up,” he said, and I grinned back, shaking my head.

“I mean that I’ll only put up the meaningful ones,” I told him. “Besides, flattery will get you nowhere. If you’re trying to get me to buy you brunch, you’re doing it wrong.”

“Damnit, you got me,” he joked. “Don’t worry, I’ll pay you back,” he said, being serious.

I shook my head. “Don’t bother. We’ll probably be buying each other tons of meals throughout the summer. It’ll all equal out in the end.”

Asher nodded. “I guess you’re right,” he said. “Next time it’s my turn to pay, though.”

I shrugged. “OK,” I said. “You won’t have to worry about it if you stay there, though. Are you ever going to get off the bike?”

He pretended to consider. “Hmm…” he said. “No. I like it here.”

I laughed, and he walked the bike to the side of the diner and parked it, taking the keys. He finally got off, and then he threw me the keys. I caught them, and we went inside.

“Hello,” a pretty girl our age said. She was wearing a uniform with a nametag that marked her as ‘Fiona’. “You must be Asher and Ben,” she continued. “You’re Asher, right?” she asked, turning to him.

“How’d you know?” he asked, surprised.

She grinned at us. “No secrets in a town like this,” she said. “Everybody knew about the new house two days after Tommy bought the land, and Bernie and Martha haven’t stopped talking about their grandson coming up. I guessed who was who because I’m extraordinarily talented,” she said, grinning to show it was a joke.

We grinned back, liking her already as she led us to a table, grabbing two menus on the way. We sat down, and she handed the menus to us.

“Just call me over when you’re ready to order,” she said. “You might have to be loud. It’s hard to hear over all the other customers.”

We laughed, noticing for the first time that the place was empty. She left us alone to decided what to get, and it didn’t take us long to decide on pancakes. We waved at Fiona, and she came over to take our order.

We told her what we wanted, and she assured us it was good before going into the back. She came back out soon, carrying our drinks, and walked back over to our table.

“Mind if I sit down?” she asked, setting the drinks in front of us, and we told her it was fine. She sat down, and started talking again immediately.

“The food will be ready in ten minutes,” she said. “Jason cooks fast.”

“Thanks,” we said, and she grinned.

“So,” she said. “You guys moved in OK?”

We nodded, and she smiled. “That’s good,” she said. “How are you liking it around here? I know you’ve only been here for a few days, but what’re your first impressions?”

“It’s really awesome out here,” I said, and Asher nodded enthusiastically.

She nodded. “What have you guys been up to since you got here?” She asked. “We all thought you’d be in town on your first days here.”

We grinned. “A lot has happened,” Asher said. “It’s hard to believe I’ve only been here for three days.”

Fiona nodded, realizing it was a long story, and moved on.

“So do you two mind if I text everybody and tell them you’re here?” she asked. “I can wait, or not tell them at all, if you want.”

We shrugged. “Why not,” we said. “We did come here to meet everyone.”

She grinned. “Awesome,” she said. “I’ll wait until you’re almost done eating. They’ll all be here in minutes after I text them, and you probably don’t want them bothering you while you eat.”

“We’re only here until one, though,” we said.

Fiona shrugged. “They won’t care,” she said. “Even half an hour’s entertainment is better than sitting around doing nothing.”

Just then, Jason yelled for Fiona to come get the pancakes. She jumped up and grabbed them, bringing them to us and going into the back so we could eat in peace.

“She seems nice,” I said quietly, so only Asher could hear. He nodded, grinning.

“She has more energy than my dog,” he said, and I laughed.

We ate quickly, not wanting to make Fiona wait, and when we were done she came and got our plates.

“Was it good?” She asked, grinning. We nodded enthusiastically.

“Tell Jason we said thanks,” I said, handing her the money.

She nodded, bringing the plates into the back. When she came back, she wasn’t wearing the apron.

“Jason’s letting me off this shift so I can bother you guys more effectively,” she said, handing me the change.

We grinned. “Awesome,” Asher said.

Fiona held up her phone. “Want me to text everybody now?” she asked. We nodded, and in a few minutes a guy our age showed up. He had dark brown hair that looked like he’d just rolled out of bed.

“Hey,” he said. “I’m Erik.”

He had barely finished talking when another pretty girl came in. She immediately eyed Asher, and then smiled brightly at him.

“Hello,” she said, smiling brightly at him. “I’m Ashley.”

I didn’t like her already, and I was saved from having to respond by two more people barging in. It was a boy and a girl, and they were followed closely by another girl. We were too overwhelmed for introductions, and it only got worse when another boy and a girl came in. Fiona, the lifesaver that she was, made them all calm down and did the introductions.

“OK,” She said. “This is Ben, and this is Asher.” She tapped each of us on the shoulder to indicate who was who. “You both met Erik and Ashely, and these are Blake and Anna,” she said, gesturing to the first couple who had come in. “This is Tori,” she said, nodding at yet another pretty girl who was smiling shyly at me, “And these are Isabelle and Ken,” she said, indicating the last couple.

We nodded, showing we understood, and they immediately started asking questions. Ashley almost immediately asked Asher if he had a girlfriend at home, and I listened intently as I realized I didn’t know the answer to that. Asher said he didn’t, and both Ashley and I were relieved, although I was careful to hide it. Tori turned the same question on me, speaking for the first time, and I told them I didn’t. We told them about Tommy spoiling us, and they didn’t believe us. We didn’t tell them about the island, though.

“Why would your uncle give all that stuff to his nephew and a kid he’d only known for a day?” Blake asked. “You guys are really bad liars.”

We grinned, and I showed them all the pictures I’d taken of my floor and the jetskis, careful not to let them see the island. Before long, it was twelve thirty, and we had to go. We said goodbye, took a picture together, and exchanged numbers before getting on the bike and driving away. This time, I drove, and it drove me crazy to have Asher’s arms around me. With every bump we hit, he pressed against my back so he wouldn’t be thrown off, and it was getting to me. I tried to hit as many bumps as I could without being obvious, enjoying the feel of his chest against my back. We got back to the house far too quickly, and we got off the bike. I managed to get rid of my boner by ignoring Asher and thinking about everybody we’d met, and by the time I had to stand up I was presentable. We decided to wait in the living room so that we could see the helicopter coming, and we sat down next to each other so we could both see it.

“So what’d you think of everyone?” Asher asked.

I shrugged. “They seem nice,” I said. “I wonder where the other three were.”

“Probably out of town,” Asher said. “Who did you like most?” His voice had taken on a teasing tone, and I was starting to get suspicious.

“Fiona,” I said, not hesitating.

“Not Tori?” he asked, grinning playfully.

“No,” I said. “Why?”

Asher laughed. “She totally likes you!” He said. “She was staring at you the whole time!”

“So?” I said, not believing him. “She barely even talked to me!”

“That’s because you took her breath away,” he said, making kissing noises.

I laughed. “I think you’re imagining things,” I said. “Just like Ashley was.”

“Ashley?” he asked.

I grinned. “Yeah,” I said. “She was dreaming about you that whole time!”

“No she wasn’t!” Asher said. “She was just being friendly.”

“Friendly?” I said incredulously. “She never stopped finding excuses to lean towards you and give you a glimpse! She started checking you out as soon as she walked in, and she didn’t stop until we left!”

Asher shrugged. “I didn’t notice anything,” he said.

I laughed. “Trust me,” I said. “She totally wanted you.”

Asher frowned, thinking about it.

“So,” I said mischievously. “Are you going to do anything about it?”

He shrugged. “I don’t know,” he said. “More importantly, are you going to do anything about Fiona?”

I laughed. “What is there to do?" I asked. “I don’t like her in the way you’re thinking. She just seems likeable.”

“Then you’re still open to Tori?” he asked, elbowing me knowingly.

“Maybe,” I said. No, I thought. “I don’t even know her.”

Just then, I saw the glint of the sun on metal in the sky. Safe, I thought. Don’t have to talk about this anymore.

“Is that the helicopter?” I said, pointing. We got up and ran to the helipad, waiting for it to drop our supplies. The helicopter arrived quickly, and we covered our ears as it landed. The pilot brought out a large box, and we took it from him, thanking him before he left. We unpacked the box, taking out a bunch of smaller boxes containing everything we’d ordered for the cave, and some food we’d ordered for the deer. We packed it all into the canoe with the scuba gear and set off for the island. When we got there, we spread food around a clearing in view of the house, deciding it was a good spot to feed the deer.

When we were done, we unpacked the boxes, finding all the waterproof electronics for the cave. We put them back into the canoe, and left it against the cliff above the cave. We put the scuba gear on and carried everything down, into the cave. It took us several trips, but we got it all in. We spent a few hours installing everything, and when we were done, we turned on the hydro generator and left so it could generate some power for the giant battery we’d gotten. We worked on the house for an hour before deciding that there’d be enough power in the cave. We climbed down the cliff so I could bring my camera, and swam into the cave. When it started to get dark, we passed the motion sensor, which turned on the waterproof light bulbs we’d installed. The whole cave lit up, and we swam through it with no fear. We reached the surface, and climbed into the cavern. We flicked on the main lights, looking around, and we saw how cool it looked.

“This really is a perfect hideout,” Asher said.

I grinned. “Yeah,” I said. “To be honest, it’s better than I’d expected already.”

Asher nodded, grinning back, and we took pictures of how it looked now. When we were done, we went into the other side of the cave to install the window. It didn’t take us long, even though we had to surface again for breath more than once, and when it was fully waterproofed we swam back into the main chamber.

“We’ll need a pump to drain it,” I said, and Asher nodded. We turned off the lights and swam back out of the cave, guided by the motion sensing lights in the entrance. We reached the surface and climbed back up the cliff. When we reached the top, we saw the deer eating the food we’d scattered for them. We sat on the cliff, not wanting to move and startle them, and they went back to eating.

I looked at Asher, excited, and he turned to me at the same time. His eyes were practically glowing with excitement, and he leaned in slowly to whisper in my ear.

“Take a picture,” he suggested, and I shivered as his lips brushed my earlobe. He leaned back, grinning, and I grinned back, holding my camera up in front of us. I took a picture of us sitting together with the deer not far in the background, and then I took a picture of just the deer. I got a lot of really good pictures of them, and when I had as many as I wanted, we turned around, inching closer, still sitting. We edged over to the foundation of our house, and sat on it, still watching the deer. They were watching us warily, but they weren’t running. Asher scooted closer to me, pressing his leg against mine, and leaned in so we could whisper and still hear each other.

“This is so cool,” he whispered.

No, I thought, not talking about the same thing he was. This is so hot. If seeing these deer makes Asher get this close, I’ll happily spend all my money on food for them.

Asher looked over at me, wondering why I hadn’t said anything yet. His eyes were light, the grey more pronounced in the sun, and they were filled with wonder. He had an amazed smile on his face, and the curve of his soft pink lips barely revealed his perfect white teeth.

You’re beautiful, I thought. “Yeah,” I said. “They’re beautiful.”

“I can’t believe they’re not running away,” he said. “They’re letting us get so close!”

I thought pretty much the exact same thing about him before focusing on the deer again.

“They’ve probably never had to run from people,” I guessed. “They must not know how to interact with us.”

He nodded. “Let’s just stay here until they leave,” he suggested. “That way, they’ll get more used to us.”

I grinned. “Good idea,” I said. I loved animals, and the deer were fascinating, but what really had me excited was spending more time with Asher this close to me. It was hard to watch the animals when Asher kept shifting, too excited to stay still. Every time he moved, it rubbed our legs together, and I felt his soft skin against mine. He leaned in closer to whisper again, and his bare shoulder touched my arm.

He opened his mouth, and I leaned a bit closer to hear him better. I felt his soft breath on my ear, and I looked at him.

“I forgot what I was going to say,” he admitted.

I smiled. “I hate when that happens,” I said, and he nodded.

“How old do you think they are?” I asked, trying to distract myself from how close he was.

He shrugged. “I don’t know much about deer,” he said. “It looks like three adults and two babies to me.”

I nodded. “I think there’s only two adults,” I said. “I don’t know much about deer either, but that one on the right looks younger than the other two its size.”

Asher nodded. “I think you’re right,” he said.

“Want to get a closer look?” I asked, handing him my camera.

He grinned, thanking me silently, and looked through the lens, zooming in.

“Mind if I take a picture?” he asked, and I shook my head.

“Not at all,” I said. “Take as many as you want.”

He zoomed out, taking a picture, but seemed dissatisfied with it. I leaned in closer to see what he was seeing, and I saw he was trying to get all of them in the frame.

“We’re at a bad angle for that,” I whispered. “Try zooming in on one of them.”

He did, and he pressed the button. He still seemed dissatisfied with the picture, and I could tell the exposure was off. I scooted even closer, pressing our sides together, and reached up to the camera. I adjusted some of the settings, and then tweaked the focus a bit.

“Try now,” I whispered, and he did. I could feel his chest move against me as he breathed as softly as he could, and I wondered why he bothered. Our whispering was louder than his breathing, and that hadn’t scared the deer. I felt his side press against me as he breathed in slowly but deeply, and I jumped when I heard the shutter close. I looked at the picture, pretending it hadn’t startled me, and saw that it was good. Asher seemed satisfied, and I moved away, not wanting to press my luck. He handed my camera back, and I grinned at him.

“See?” I said. “It’s not hard to take a good picture with this camera.”

He snorted quietly. “It’s not hard when I have you to make it good,” he corrected. “My centering was still off. Maybe next time you should aim it for me too,” he joked. “Then I’ll finally take a good picture.”

“Your centering wasn’t bad,” I said, trying to distract myself from the image of my arms around Asher as I helped him aim the camera. “We can just crop it a little bit, and it’ll look perfect.”

Asher grinned at me. “When was the last time you cropped one of your photos?” he asked.

I shrugged. It had been a long time.

“See?” he said triumphantly. “Don’t try to tell me you’re not a good photographer.”

I laughed quietly. “Fine,” I said. “But that was still your first try. Once you try a few more times, you’ll be as good as me.”

He shook his head, exasperated. “I could learn the settings,” he said, “But you can’t learn talent. You can always see the best angle to take it from, and it’s nothing to do with the camera.”

I shrugged, and he snorted. “Just accept the compliment,” he said, smiling, and I grinned.

“OK,” I conceded. “Thank you.”

Asher looked satisfied, and we turned back to the deer. They were finishing up the last of the food, and we watched as they ate it all and wandered away. We spread a bit more, and then worked on the house for a while longer. When we were done, Asher tried taking more pictures with my camera. He took one or two of the foundation, and then some off the cliff, but then he decided he wanted me in the pictures.

He made me sit on the cliff and look out at the horizon, and he took a lot of pictures before finding the timer mode. He set the camera on the foundation of the house, moving it until he was satisfied, and then he sat down next to me on the cliff. We heard a snap behind us, and he ran back to see what it looked like. He brought the camera back over, and sat down next to me again, showing me the picture.

“Wow,” I said. “That’s really good!”

He grinned. “I got that blur effect by accident,” he admitted. “I focused it wrong, but I decided I liked it like that. It makes the sunset stand out more.”

I laughed. “Who cares if it was an accident? It’s a really good picture. That one’s definitely going on the timeline.”

He grinned wider, and I couldn’t help grinning back. He handed me the camera, and made me turn around so my back was to the horizon. He turned too, and I took a picture of us with the lake in the background. You could just see the edge of the cliff, and it was clear that we were high off the water. It was a really good picture, but something was missing. I decided to take a chance, and I put my arm around Asher’s shoulders and took another picture. I reluctantly let my arm fall, and looked at the picture. We were both smiling happily, and it finally seemed complete.

“There,” I said, grinning, and showed Asher. He grinned back, and we walked over to the canoe, getting in. We rowed back to the mainland, and went looking for a pump.

“It’s probably in the boathouse,” I said. We checked, but it wasn’t.

“What about the shed by the beach?” he asked. I shrugged, and we checked there.

“Got it,” Asher said, pulling it out. We put in into the canoe and paddled back, bringing the scuba gear again. We carried it into the cave, and dropped it into the other branch, bringing the pipe across the cavern so the water would go into the entrance. We plugged it in, and it started to go.

“This system works really well,” I said. Asher nodded, and we watched the water pouring out of the pipe.

“Let’s leave it going and work on the house for an hour,” Asher suggested. “It’ll take a while to finish.”

I nodded, and we swam out, leaving the scuba gear in the canoe, which we parked on the beach. We worked on the house, and when we finished the frame, I stopped.

“I’m gonna check on it,” I said, walking towards the cliff. “I’ll be right back,” I told him as I stepped off the cliff. I plunged through the water and stopped at the cave mouth, where I swam in. I climbed into the cave, and saw it was only halfway done. I swam back out and climbed the cliff again.

“It’s only half done,” I told Asher, who was working on the roof.

He shrugged. “Whatever,” he said. “It’s not like we’d do anything different if it was finished.”

I nodded, and we kept working. We finished the roof, and this time Asher went to check. I added a few finishing touches, and heard him surface at the bottom of the cliff.

“Is it done?” I asked. He nodded, beginning to climb up. I sat on the edge of the cliff, watching his muscles bulge as he pulled himself up. I offered him my hand as he got within reach, and pulled him up. We sat for a few minutes, resting quietly, before going back to work. We finished one wall before dark, and then we went to get the canoe. We rowed over to the cave, and put on the scuba gear again to go grab the pump. We made our way through the cave easily, leaving our tanks on hooks we’d installed for that purpose in the vertical shaft, so we didn’t have to carry them up. We grabbed the pump, which Asher had unplugged earlier, and brought it out. We threw all the stuff into the canoe, and then paddled back to the mainland once again.

“If we keep using the canoe to carry things we’ll both be ripped by the end of the summer,” Asher laughed. I grinned, and we put everything away before returning to the house. We went into the sauna again, careful to keep it short this time. When we were warm again, we went back to the living room. We checked our phones, and saw that Martha and Bernie wanted Asher back.

“Shit,” he said, reading the text. “They want me to spend tomorrow with them,” he told me apologetically.

“That’s fine,” I said, trying to hide my disappointment. “I guess they do want to see you at some point this summer,” I joked, and Asher grinned. “I have to skype my parents anyway,” I said. “And I’ve kind of been ignoring my friends.”

Asher laughed. “I know what you mean,” he said. “I’ve definitely neglected everybody back home.”

I grinned. “I guess we’ll have a day to catch up, then,” I said, and Asher nodded.

“See you later,” he said. “Tell Tommy I said bye, and thanks again.”

I nodded. “See you,” I said, watching his ass as he began to walk out. I’d been right when I picked those shorts for him, and my only regret was not paying enough attention to his wonderful ass while he was still wearing them. He closed the door behind him, and walked outside. I ran after him, and I got another glimpse of his ass before he turned around and I had to stop staring.

“Do you want a ride?” I asked. “I forgot there’s no real way to get back to your house from here.”

“Sure,” he said, grinning. “I didn’t really plan that far ahead.”

We got on the dirt bike, and I let him drive again. We reached his house much faster than I wanted to, but slower than I expected. He hadn’t been going at top speed.

“Bye,” he said, getting off the bike.

“Bye,” I said, scooting forward so I could drive it. “Say hi to Martha and Bernie for me.”

He nodded, and turned to go into the house. I made a pretense of retying my shoelace so that I could watch his ass as he walked back into the house without raising suspicion. He turned when he reached the door, waving, and I waved back, finished ‘tying my shoelace’. I turned the motorbike around and drove off, already missing having his arms around me as I drove. It took me less than ten seconds to come to the conclusion that I didn’t like dirt biking without him nearly as much. I drove quickly, and I arrived back at the house before long. I walked in, not seeing Tommy anywhere, and decided to eat later. The pancakes had been filling. I walked into my living room, turned on my computer, and called my parents on skype.

The call connected, and I saw my dad. “Hey, dad,” I said.

“You remember me?” he joked, and I grinned. “Honey!” he called. “Ben’s on Skype!”

My mom arrived, and I waved.

“Hey, Ben,” she said. “What have you been up to?”

I told them all about Asher and what we’d been doing, and showed them some of the pictures I’d taken. They couldn’t wait to meet him, and I promised to skype them again with him there. They wanted to know more about what the house was like, so I gave them a tour. They jokingly demanded that I come home before I forget everything they’d taught me about money, and I told them it was too late. I told them about our island, and they told me that they understood if I never wanted to come home. Eventually, they had to go, since they were going out with my friend’s parents. They made me promise again to call them back when Asher was around, and then we hung up. I checked my phone, and saw that Fiona had texted me.

Hello, she’d sent. Miss me yet?

Yeah, I responded. Asher left and I had to talk to my parents. I’ve been dying to talk to a real person.

Your parents are annoying? She asked.

No, I told her. That was a joke. They’re actually really cool.

That’s good, she said. Tara wanted me to tell you she said hi, Fiona texted. Before you ask, I don’t know why she didn’t text you herself.

Asher thinks she likes me, I told her. If he’s right, that might be why.

Oh, he’s right, Fiona said. She ‘likes’ every hot guy who isn’t taken, and some who are. She’s almost as bad as Ashley.

Yeah, I said. Ashley was hitting on Asher pretty hard, huh?

Ooh, Fiona sent. Somebody’s jealous! You like him, don’t you?

No, I lied. We’re just friends.

Oh come on, Fiona said. That sounded fake, even in a text. Skype me? She requested, changing the subject abruptly.

Ok, I said, and we exchanged skype information. She called immediately, and the first thing I saw was her grinning face.

“Hi,” she said. “Is your uncle there?”

I shook my head. “He’s upstairs,” I told her.

“Good,” She said, her grin turning mischievous. “You totally like him!” she said, excited in the way only girls can get when talking about something like this.

“No I don’t!” I protested.

“You’re blushing!” she teased. “You totally like him!”

I sighed. “Fine,” I said. “Maybe I do. Just a bit. Please don’t tell anyone?” I begged.

She squealed happily. “It’s OK,” She said. “Your secret is safe with me.”

“Thanks,” I said, relieved. “I’m not ready for everyone to know about me yet.”

She grinned. “I’ve always wanted a guy friend who I can talk to about hot guys!” she said. “Ashley and Tara can’t see one without trying to get involved.”

I grinned. “I can tell,” I said, and she laughed.

“Oh yeah,” she remembered. “You were on the receiving end of that.”

I laughed. “Tara didn’t bother me,” I said. “It was Ashley who got on my nerves,” I admitted.

Fiona grinned. “I can see why,” she said.

I laughed guiltily. “I’m not used to talking about this,” I admitted. “I’ve never told anyone that I’m gay.”

Fiona’s grin turned devilish. “Well then prepare to be extremely uncomfortable,” she said. “We’re gonna talk about Asher now. What’s your favorite thing about him?”

I thought for a second before she clarified. “Body only,” she said. “We can talk about his personality after.”

I thought again before answering. “Probably his ass, eyes, or lips,” I told her. “Everything about him is sexy, but those are my favorite.”

“Yeah,” she agreed. “His ass looked really good in those shorts.”

I grinned guiltily. “Those were mine,” I told her. “I dressed him this morning.”

“OoOoh,” she singsonged. “Tell me all about it!”

“He slept over last night, so he needed some clothes this morning. I picked those because of how they’d make his ass look,” I told her.

She grinned. “Did you catch a glimpse?” she asked, and I shook my head.

“Not really,” I told her, disappointed. “I saw a bit of his thigh, but nothing more.”

She laughed. “Damn,” she said. “Maybe next time.”

I frowned. “That won’t be for a while, though,” I complained. “He’s spending tomorrow with his grandparents.”

Fiona grimaced. “I feel your pain,” she said, and I laughed.

“I know I’m pathetic, but I’ve missed him since I dropped him off at his house,” I said.

She laughed. “It’s not pathetic,” she said. “It’s cute. You guys would make such a good couple.”

I grinned. “I’ve put my arm around him,” I offered, and her face lit up. “Three times,” I told her, blushing and grinning.

“What did he think?” she asked, grinning, happy for me.

I grinned back. “See for yourself,” I said, and shared screens so she could see the pictures. I trusted Fiona already, but I didn’t show her the ones from the cave. The cave was special to Asher and I, and I’d never tell anyone about it. I showed her the pictures I’d taken when I’d first put my arm around him, and she laughed when she saw I’d pulled him into the lake.

“He looks surprised, but not unhappy,” she said. “I don’t think he minded.”

I grinned. “That’s good,” I said, relieved, and we moved on to the other pictures. I showed her the deer family, and we kept going until we got to where Asher had been taking the pictures.

“We were sitting over there,” I told her, pointing out the foundation in one of the pictures. “He sat down really close to me so we could whisper without scaring the deer, and our legs were touching for almost ten minutes,” I told her.

She laughed in delight. “Was it awkward?” she asked.

I shook my head, smiling happily as I remembered. “No,” I told her. “But that’s not the best part.”

Fiona squealed, excited. “What happened?” she asked.

My smile got even wider. “We were sitting there, shirtless, and I leaned over to help him with the camera. Our sides were pressed against each other, and we stayed there for a while!”

Fiona laughed, and I continued. “When he took the picture, I was so focused on his chest moving against me that I jumped,” I admitted.

Fiona giggled. “You don’t like him ‘a bit’,” she said. “You like him a lot!”

I tried to suppress the silly smile that I felt coming on, but I failed, and she noticed.

“You really like him!” she said, smiling widely.

I shrugged. “Yeah,” I said. “I guess I do.”

“OK,” Fiona said. “Tell me what happened next!”

I grinned. “The deer left, but he kept taking pictures. He decided that the next best target was me, and got me to sit on the edge of the cliff so he could take pictures of the horizon.” I showed her the pictures he’d taken as I talked, and she smiled excitedly. “Then,” I said, smiling wider as I remembered, “He sat down with me and used the timer.” I showed her the picture, and kept talking. “After that, he went and got the camera again and sat down next to me. He decided that he wanted a picture of us with the horizon as the background, so we turned around and he gave me the camera.” I showed her that picture, and she squealed again, unable to control herself.

“That’s such a good picture!” she said.

I grinned. “No it isn’t,” I said. “This one is.” I went to the next picture, where I had my arm around Asher, and she gasped.

“You guys look so good together!” She squealed. “He looks totally OK with it!”

I grinned. “I hope so,” I said.

“Honestly,” Fiona said seriously. “If anyone had a chance at turning somebody gay, it’d be you. You two are the hottest real people I’ve ever seen.”

“Me?” I asked, disbelieving. “What’s hot about me?”

Fiona grinned. “Don’t ever ask that question unless you have enough time and patience for a giant list,” she said. “You’re a really good looking guy overall, but if I had to pick your best feature, it’d be your ass.”

“Why?” I asked, surprised. “I didn’t think my ass was anything special.”

Fiona laughed. “Your ass rivals Asher’s,” she told me. “Asher has a bubble butt, but your ass is hard and muscular. When I watched you two walk to your table, I could practically hear angels crying in jealousy.”

I laughed. “Yeah,” I agreed. “You could build a shrine to Asher’s ass.”

“You said you liked his lips, too?” she prompted, and I grinned.

“Yeah,” I said. “They’re the perfect color, and I’ve never seen them be anything less than kissable. It just gets better when he smiles.”

“Yeah,” Fiona agreed. “Asher has the single hottest smile I’ve ever seen on a person.”

I nodded enthusiastically. “Look at how beautiful his eyes are,” I said, pointing them out on the picture.

“They lighten up when he smiles,” I told her, remembering it.

Fiona grinned. “You’re totally lovesick,” she accused.

I grinned. “I know,” I said. “He’s just so perfect!”

She grinned. “If Asher’s spending tomorrow with his grandparents, maybe I can help distract you from missing him,” she suggested.

“Sure,” I said. “Thanks. That sounds awesome!”

She grinned again. “We can meet at the diner,” She said. “I’ll bring you somewhere we can talk without being disturbed.”

“This is starting to sound like a date,” I said, pretending to be suspicious.

Fiona laughed. “Don’t worry,” she said. “I’m perfectly capable of having non-sexual relationships with the opposite sex. I’m not going to hit on you or Asher.”

I grinned. “That’s a relief,” I said. “Not that you’re not pretty, but you’re not really my type,” I told her. “You know, because you don’t have a dick.”

She laughed. “It’s too bad that I don’t,” she said. “It’d be easier to be a straight guy right now, since all the hot guys are off-limits.”

I laughed, but then I froze as another skype call came in.

“Asher’s calling me!” I said, panicking.

“Quick!” She joked. “Hide the evidence!”

I closed all the pictures, and stopped screen sharing.

“Do you mind if I add him into the call?” I asked, and Fiona grinned.

“Don’t let me get in the way,” she said.

“Thanks,” I said gratefully, and accepted Asher’s call.

“Hey Ben!” He said, excited. “Good news! Oh, hi Fiona.”

“Hey,” Fiona and I said.

“What’s the good news?” I asked.

“My grandparents told me to invite you over tomorrow!” he said. “They’re fine if you spend the day with us!”

My face fell. “Oh, crap,” I said. “I literally just made plans with Fiona.”

“No, it’s fine,” Fiona said, giving me a knowing grin. “I should work tomorrow anyway, to make up for leaving early today.”

“Thanks!” I said, grinning back.

“Thanks, Fiona!” Asher said. “Sorry to steal him from you.”

“No,” Fiona said. “It’s OK. He’s all yours.”

She grinned at me, giving it a double meaning, and I tried not to grin back. Asher looked happy, and he was oblivious to our secret conversation. Fiona looked like she was going to start squealing or giggling again soon, so she looked away, as if at a clock.

“I should probably get to bed now,” she said. “I’ll see you guys later.”

“Bye,” Asher said.

“Bye,” I echoed. “Thanks again,” I said, talking about more than just tomorrows plans.

Fiona grinned at me knowingly, silently wishing me good luck, and left the call.

“Sorry,” Asher said. “Was I cockblocking you?”

I shook my head. “We’re just friends,” I said. “We don’t like each other like that.”

Asher nodded, relieved. “I felt really bad about that for a minute,” he said.

I grinned. “Don’t worry about it,” I said.

He grinned back at me, but then we heard Martha calling him. “Sorry,” he said. “I ditched ‘go-fish’ to tell you the good news. I have to go now.”

“It’s fine,” I said. “See you tomorrow.”

He nodded. “See you,” he said, and hung up. As soon as his face left the screen, I felt a giant grin spread across my face.

Thank you so much, I texted to Fiona. You’re a lifesaver!

Fiona sent a smiley face back. You owe me, she warned. You’re going to have to tell me everything that goes on between you tomorrow.

It’s a deal, I sent.

Goodnight, she sent. I wasn’t kidding about needing to go to bed.

Sorry for keeping you up, I said, feeling guilty.

It’s fine, she said. I’d lose a little bit of sleep to hear about you and Asher any day.

I sent a laughing face. Goodnight, I sent, putting my phone down and heading for the shower. Talking to Asher had given me a hard-on that wouldn’t be ignored, and it had been far too long since I’d had the privacy to relieve myself. I stripped off my clothes and stepped into the shower, giving my cock a tug. I turned the water on hot, and began to stroke myself, thinking of Asher. My cock grew to its full seven inches, and I began to stroke faster as I remembered how it had felt to put my arm around Asher. I pictured him in this shower, my imagination filling in what I hadn’t been able to see when he leaned out of the shower. I imagined his cock was near my size, maybe a bit bigger, and I hoped he was circumcised like I was. I lasted shorter than I want to admit, and soon I was painting the wall white, thoughts of Asher dancing through my brain. I felt the strength return to my limbs as I came down from my orgasmic high, and I washed off, feeling slightly guilty about using Asher to get off. I finished my shower and went straight to bed, tired out from working all day. I fell asleep easily thanks to the post-orgasm bliss, and I dreamed of Asher.