Sex in the Sky

“What the hell is going on here?” Dillon”s voice cut through the stillness of the room, distracting Ash and giving Jamie the advantage he needed. Jamie raised his knee and planted it right where Ash least wanted to be hit. He clutched his nuts, and down he went.

Dillon crossed the room in an instant and hauled Ash to his feet. He had his fist cocked and ready to put Ash”s lights out when Jamie hollered, “Don”t do it, Dillon. He”s drunk. I wouldn”t have kneed him if he hadn”t been trying to . . . well, you know.”

“He”s drunk?”

“Yeah. Can”t you smell it?” Even from where Jamie stood, the stale smell of whisky filled the whole room.

Dillon nodded and wrinkled his nose. He dropped Ash, who fell to the floor in a heap, holding his balls and moaning. Dillon said, “Well, shit. What the hell are we supposed to do with him now?”

“I don”t think you”re allowed to say “shit” in church. Isn”t it like a law or something?”

“James, I think even God would agree that “shit” is the right word to use in this case. The service is supposed to start in about fifteen minutes, and, as bad as I hate to say it, we can”t just leave him here like this.”

Damn. Dillon was right. As much as Jamie would like to leave Ash in a miserable pile for trying to force Jamie into giving him a blow job, the fact remained that he couldn”t. Jamie was pretty sure the alcohol had motivated the advance, anyway. Ash was an honor student, as well as a Plunkett High football star. He”d never been in any real fights that Jamie knew of, and even though Ash wasn”t exactly a champion for gay rights, he”d never known him to be a basher, either. He wasn”t even sure what Ash was doing here. He barely knew Ben. Jamie was just about to try his luck at getting an answer from Ash, who”d progressed from moaning to a slight mewling sound, when the door swung open, and Chad Minton came into the room. He took one look at Ash and whirled on Dillon. “What the hell did you faggots do to him?”

Dillon”s face turned red, and Jamie could tell that he was just about to blast Chad, when Ash spoke up, his voice thick and slurred. “They didn”t do anything to me, man. It was my own fault. We should never have come here, and if my damned father hadn”t made me pay my “respects to a fallen classmate,” I wouldn”t be here now. Just help me up, and we”ll get outta here.”

Chad went to Ash”s aid, even as he said, “What will your dad say if the two of us ditch before the service even starts?”

“Like he”s gonna know. He and stepmother number five left for Europe about two hours ago. Second honeymoon, they called it. Funny, seeing as how they”ve only been married for three months.” He stumbled to his feet with Chad”s help. They were almost to the door, when Ash turned back and said, “James?”

“Yeah?”

Ash opened his mouth, then closed it again before any sound came out. Jamie figured he was about to apologize, but the words must have stuck in his throat, because all he got out was a squeaky, “Never mind,” before Chad helped him out the door.

Once they were gone, Dillon rushed over to Jamie, putting his hands on Jamie”s shoulders and looking into his eyes. “Are you okay?”

“Yeah. He didn”t hurt me.”

“Not for lack of trying. You wanna tell me what just happened?”

“Pretty much what it looked like. I came in here to pray for Ben, and the next thing I knew Ash was in my face, demanding service, so to speak. I said no, you came in, and the rest is history.”

Dillon removed his hands and balled up his fists. “Drunk or not, I should have kicked his ass for touching you in the first place.”

That hit Jamie the wrong way. So what if he was smaller than most guys, or more reserved? That didn”t mean he was helpless. Did Dillon think that because Jamie had let Dillon take advantage of him in the past, that Jamie was the girl in their relationship? The little woman, in need of protection? Having Dillon try to fight his battles for him played upon all of Jamie”s worst fears and insecurities, fear that Dillon saw him as something less than an equal. That, plus the stress of saying goodbye to Ben and being pawed in the middle of church, caused Jamie to snap.

“Why should you have kicked his ass, Dillon? Because you believe I”m not capable of taking care of myself? You think I”m some puss who needs his big, bad boyfriend to play bodyguard?”

Dillon”s face turned white as death, and if he hadn”t been so upset, Jamie might have felt guilty. Dillon”s voice was horse as he stammered out, “No! I never thought of you that way. I wouldn”t . . . James, it”s not like that.”

“Then how is it, Dillon? You tell me.”

Dillon might have answered if Megan hadn”t stuck her head into the still open doorway. “The service is about to start, guys. Pastor Oakley just stepped onto the platform.”

Dillon nodded and then cast Jamie one last, pleading look before following Megan out the door. Jamie steeled himself for what was coming, the argument with Dillon temporarily cast aside in the face of Ben”s memorial. This was it. He took a deep breath and followed them.

Jamie, Dillon, and Megan sat together, three rows from the front. Aunt Sadie was sitting with the Nash family, one row back. The place was packed, from the first pew down front to the balcony above. Jamie was almost willing to bet that half the people there hadn”t even known Ben. Hearse chasers, looking for a good show.

The First Christian Church was beautiful, a mixture of late nineteenth century architecture and modern restoration done in period style. The things that set the place apart, though, were the cathedral ceilings and the massive stained glass windows dominating the east-facing wall, windows that seemed delicate despite their size. Too bad Jamie couldn”t soak himself in the beauty. He only saw what was missing: his best friend. He noticed a blown up picture of Ben–grainy and having been lifted from the yearbook–placed on the raised stage, and several tasteful flower arrangements clustered around the altar. Since Ben had been cremated, there was no casket, and Nora had wisely chosen not to showcase the urn holding Ben”s ashes. Jamie thanked heaven for small favors. He looked around for Nora, but couldn”t see her in the throng of designer-clad spectators. Nothing like a memorial to bring out the best in folks–or their wardrobes.

Walter Oakley approached the pulpit, a pleasant looking man, with gray, thinning hair, and round, wire-framed glasses. He”d seemed nice enough when he”d greeted Jamie in the hallway, but, even so, Jamie dreaded what he was about to hear. He expected some long winded diatribe about how everything happened for a reason and how they shouldn”t grieve for Ben because he was in a better place. Jamie, though, was in for a surprise.

Oakley adjusted his glasses and looked out upon the crowd. “Normally, I begin each funeral or memorial service with a prayer, and then I go into a heartfelt sermon about celebrating a life well lived and rejoicing because a soul has been reunited with his Lord. Then again, most funerals I preside over are those of older folks, such as myself, who”ve had a chance to live, to taste the world and all its wonders. There is no way I can, in good conscience, tell you that I celebrate the passing of an eighteen-year-old boy whose life hasn”t even started.”

“Benjamin Lewis left this earth a babe, another victim of a senseless tragedy that defies all logic and reason. Though Ben was not a personal friend of mine, time and again I”ve seen young ones like him fall, cast down before ever really having had a chance to rise. At times like these, I wish I had a direct line to God. I”d ask Him why Ben Lewis was taken, why he experienced so little joy in his young life, only to have what little happiness he”d managed to find so cruelly snatched away.” Oakley removed his glasses and pinched the bridge of his nose. “Since I can”t do that, I, like you, am asked to trust God, to believe that the answers will someday be made clear to us. I do believe that, but to those left behind, there is often little solace to be found in such beliefs.” Oakley replaced the wire frames on his nose and again scanned the crowd. “There is a certain peace to be found in our Creator, but it is often hard won in the face of tragedy. As He prepared His disciples for the Crucifixion and the trials to follow afterwards, Jesus spoke of such a peace–as we are told in the thirty-third verse of the sixteenth chapter of John–when he said, “These things I have spoken to you, that in Me you may have peace. In the world you have tribulation, but take courage; I have overcome the world.”"

Oakley closed the prayer book he”d earlier placed upon the lectern and said, “Jesus overcame the world, and through him, so may we. That is not to suggest that the road between the here and the hereafter will be a smooth one. In fact, we are assured of just the opposite. My prayer now is not for Ben, who”s reached the end of his journey among us, but for his family and friends, those left behind and trying to find order in chaos. Would you bow your heads?”

Jamie closed his eyes, and though he heard the words of Oakley”s prayer, he couldn”t wrap his mind around them. He liked the fact that Pastor Oakley hadn”t tried to explain away Ben”s death with some tired old speech, but he still wasn”t sure how he was supposed to feel or what he was supposed to do to obtain this closure everyone kept going on about. Jamie didn”t even realize the prayer was finished until he saw movement from the corner of his eye and noticed folks were raising their heads. He did the same, the whole time wondering what was next.

Oakley said his amens and went straight to the next part. Jamie was grateful to the man for not dragging it out “I think now would be a good time to hear from those who knew and loved Ben. If any of you would like to say a few words on his behalf, please, step forward at this time.”

Nora Slater came up first. Jamie always marveled at what a striking figure Ben”s foster mother made, with her long brown hair and her olive complexion. At five-eleven, she reminded Jamie of a willow tree, towering over most women–and many men. Even so, she carried her slender frame with a subtle grace that emphasized her beauty. Though she was not a day older than forty, Nora was the only stable adult influence Ben had ever known. Too bad she hadn”t gotten him sixteen years sooner.

Nora approached the lectern and smoothed imaginary wrinkles from her elegant black skirt suit. Her hazel eyes scanned the crowd, finding Jamie almost immediately. They exchanged a look– a subtle acknowledgement of the bond they shared–before Nora said, “I”d like to thank all of you for coming. I”m overwhelmed by the turn out. I hope everyone here knew Ben, or at least had the chance to know him.” Her voice turned thick, but she held it together. “If you didn”t know him, you”d probably think he was a tough guy, one of those kids who gave a lot more crap than he took.” She managed a weak smile. “That was true, but there was another side to Ben, a softer side. If you were one of the lucky few to be loved by Ben,” again she looked to Jamie, “he would have moved Heaven and earth to see you happy. That”s the Ben, the loving Ben, that I say goodbye to today.” Tears began to roll down her cheeks. “That”s the boy I grieve, the boy I was proud to call my son.” Nora said another quick thank-you, nodded to Walter Oakley, and returned to her seat.

Next up were two girls Jamie recognized from school, both with teary eyes and padded bras. Each one gave a stirring account of what a tragedy Ben”s death was and how deeply he would be missed. Jamie was proud of himself for not gagging.

When the second girl finished her act, there was an awkward pause while Oakley waited for the next speaker to come forward. Dillon leaned close to Jamie and whispered, “You gonna go up there?”

Jamie shook his head. He couldn”t do it. He”d never make it through without loosing it. Dillon seemed to understand. He gave Jamie”s knee a light squeeze before pulling back his hand.

Oakley was just before reclaiming the pulpit when Dan Morgan stepped on the stage. “If you don”t mind, Pastor, I have a few words I want to say.”

Pastor Oakley moved back to his chair as Morgan took his place at the podium. His Italian suit looked to be hand cut, and as usual, every hair on his head was in order. He stood before the memorial crowd like a politician addressing potential voters. “We”re here today to mourn the passing of one of our own, a young man cut down in the prime of his life. Ben Lewis was perched on the cusp of manhood, only to be plucked from our midst by an almost unfathomable tragedy. We come here today to make sense of the senseless, to infuse logic into the illogical. Though as Mr. Oakley so deftly pointed out, such a happening is difficult to understand, I think I may be able to put Ben”s death into a perspective you can all relate to.” Morgan smiled again, but this time Jamie could have sworn he saw something behind Morgan”s grin, some malicious intent buried beneath the flashing white teeth and the prep school charm.

Morgan placed both hands on the lectern. “Just like Mr. Oakley, I put great store in the principles laid out for us in the Bible. Now, I”m not up on chapter and verse, but I think I can make my point just the same. To paraphrase, “Whatever a man reaps, that”s what he”ll sow.” You ask why Ben Lewis had to die. I”ll tell you why. The evil that he did in life finally caught up to him. Ben Lewis sowed seeds of sin and strife. How ironic, then, that Ben”s life should be taken by a drunkard, a man whose own life has been just as fruitless and violent as Ben”s.”

Jamie heard Walter Oakley clear his throat as Nora gasped and someone else cursed, but Morgan was far from finished. He pulled a folded piece of paper from his breast pocket and then continued.

“Now, lest you take my word for it,” he shook out the paper, “I have here a list of Ben Lewis”s indiscretions. And these are just the ones we know about.” Holding the document in front of himself like a banner, Morgan said, “Benjamin Lewis was a rap-sheet with legs. Between the ages of eleven and fifteen alone, Ben was arrested four times for solicitation, had five petty theft charges, got sent to juvenile hall three times for misdemeanor assault, and was implicated in two separate drug busts. Ben lived in twelve different foster homes–mainly because he was so unruly his foster parents couldn”t control him–and did over six months in two different juvenile detention facilities. Perhaps if those “kiddy jails” had kept him until he turned eighteen, he”d still be alive. For some reason, he always seemed to get out early for good behavior.” Morgan snorted. “Good behavior was something Ben Lewis knew nothing about. Even after he ran away from his last foster home and Nora Slater so graciously took him in, Ben couldn”t seem to get his act together. I know he was arrested several times for crimes ranging from shoplifting to drug possession.” Morgan paused for effect. “The question then becomes, should we really be grieving for Ben Lewis? I say, he got what he deserved.”

“And I say you”re full of shit, Morgan.” Brandon Nash stepped up on stage and gave Oakley an apologetic glance. “Sorry about that, Pastor, but only a craven coward talks trash about a dead man in front of his loved ones.” Morgan opened his mouth to speak, but Brandon beat him to the punch. “Sit down, Morgan. You”ve had your turn. You”re lucky as hell I can”t think of anything to charge you with for exposing Ben Lewis”s juvenile record. If I can find something, though, you bet your ass I will.”

That shut Morgan up and propelled him back to his seat. Brandon took the pulpit, his eyes flashing. For some reason, Brandon”s anger soothed Jamie. At least someone besides Nora and himself was outraged over Morgan”s comments. Jamie had no idea the amount of comfort and resolution Brandon”s next words were gonna bring.

Brandon spoke with obvious reluctance. “I”m not much of a public speaker. I leave all that diplomacy crap to my better half. God knows how I got elected sheriff. It certainly wasn”t for my people skills. But the fact is, I did get elected, and that put me in a unique position where Ben Lewis was concerned.” He shifted so that his hip was propped against the podium in typical Brandon Nash style. “There are two kinds of arrestees: the kind that clam up on you and go all quiet, and the kind who get made as Hel–um, heck, and raise the roof. Ben was in the second category. I got to see the worst of him, the angry, belligerent side. He was brought in on a variety of charges–all misdemeanors, I might add–and never once came in without setting the whole station on its ear. Even so, I can honestly say that I admired Ben Lewis. I may not have agreed with his views on the differences between right and wrong, but I admired the person he was inside, apart from that tough guy routine of his.”

Brandon”s blue eyes scanned the room. He settled on Jamie for just a second before moving on. “As Morgan so kindly pointed out, Ben Lewis didn”t always make the smartest choices, but no one really knows how much of that Ben did to survive. And survive he did. That”s where my admiration for Ben comes in. He wasn”t one of those people that sat down and gave up just because life dealt him a lousy hand. Was he bitter? Yeah, a little bit. But he didn”t let that bitterness or fear keep him from living a full life. He lived–and loved, from what I hear– like there was no tomorrow.” Again, Brandon”s eyes settled on Jamie. “I can”t say for sure, but I believe if Ben Lewis were here with us right now, he”d tell those he cared about to do the same thing, to let go of what”s holding them back and move forward.” With that last bit of advice, Brandon nodded to Pastor Oakley and exited the stage.

Pastor Oakley wasn”t about to give Morgan a chance to say anything else. The minute Brandon relinquished the pulpit, Oakley reclaimed it, thanked everyone for coming, and ended the service. It took Jamie a full minute to realize people were starting to stand. He was still locked under the spell of Brandon”s words. They shamed him, made him realize he”d been hiding behind Ben, using his death as an excuse not to face his feelings for Dillon. The question now was, did he have the courage to change all that?

Dillon peered down at Jamie from where he was standing. “James? You okay?”

“Jamie.”

“Huh?”

Jamie looked up at him, blue eyes into green. “Jamie. My friends and family call me Jamie.” He lowered his voice for Dillon”s ears only. “I always loved the way you said my name.”

Dillon”s smile was the best thing Jamie had seen in a long time. “Jamie, are you ready?” He said “Jamie” like a caress.

Jamie stood up and slipped his hand into Dillon”s. “I”m ready.” And he was ready. Ready for everything he”d been denying them both.

#

Dillon held on to Jamie”s hand like a lifeline, afraid to let go, scarcely daring to believe that Jamie”s new-found acceptance of him was real. He wanted to get Jamie alone, to talk to him, to find out what he was thinking. Dillon led him through the sanctuary, stopping just long enough to say goodbye to Megan and to tell Jamie”s Aunt Sadie that they were leaving. Jamie had accepted Dillon”s offer of a ride home–a good sign–but Dillon needed more. He needed to know what was going on in Jamie”s head. They”d almost made it to the front doors of the church when they ran into Nora.

Her eyes were red, and her face was pinched, but Dillon could tell that the smile she gave Jamie was genuine. She took Jamie”s free hand and pulled him in for a tight hug. “Thanks for everything, Jamie.” Her eyes were filled with tears when she pulled back. “You did more for Ben than anyone ever could have. I can never repay you for making the last two years of his life so special.”

The two friends hugged tightly. Hayden lay down in bed after Lexie had left. He only hoped that they could figure out what had happened. He didn’t want to lose Leo, but he was afraid that he was already too late.

?

The last two weeks had been absolute hell on Hayden. He sat on his bed with his keyboard and worked on his music for the frat’s talent show. The dorm room seemed cold and empty. Leo had moved out a few days after the incident, and Hayden hadn’t been able to talk to him. Lexie even started to pull away from him. Leo had seen them talking in the Quad, and it was just too difficult for her to keep in touch much.

Hayden quietly hummed along as his fingers moved across the keyboard. He had originally planned on singing something for Leo, and that was still his plan. It was the choice of song that Hayden had changed. To make matters worse Benji had left campus due to a family emergency. So Hayden hadn’t even been able to talk to him about what had supposedly happened.

Hayden knew in his heart that there was no way he could have cheated on Leo, but his mind was winning the argument after seeing the first part of the video. It was very clear that it was Benji and himself in the room. Hayden’s head pounded with a migraine from the flow of thoughts that constantly slammed through his head.

After a few more hours of practice Hayden realized that he had to get ready for the talent show. He mindlessly got ready. After taking a shower, Hayden threw on a pair of faded jeans and a black dress shirt. He didn’t bother tucking the shirt in. Hayden grabbed his wallet and keys along with his song’s sheet music. It was a cool evening, and the chill air helped clear Hayden’s head as he walked to the frat house.

Hayden had no clue if Leo and Lexie would be at the show, but it was the hottest thing going on at the moment. He prayed that Leo would be there to hear his song, but either way he decided to sing it. He had promised the frat that he would perform. The guys had heard him sing before, and they had demanded that he be on stage that night.

The frat had built a stage in their huge backyard, and there had to have been at least a hundred people waiting for the show to start. Hayden hung out in the room reserved for the performers and tried to have fun, but it just wasn’t working. He gave up on the chitchat with people and just silently went through the song in his head. His fingers still crossed that Leo would be out there listening.

Time had been going so slow during the day, but it seemed to drastically speed up in the evening. Before Hayden knew it, it was his turn to take the stage. He was one of the last performers, and the crowed was definitely pumped. There was a smattering of applause as Hayden took the stage. He slowly made his way over the keyboard and microphone that had been setup for him.

His eyes quickly scanned the crowd, and he realized that most of the frat brothers had gathered in the back of the crowd. Hayden expected to have a thousand butterflies floating in his stomach, but he was eerily calm.

Hayden’s eyes focused on the sunset that bathed the yard in a surreal light. As his fingers touched the keyboard to start the song, Hayden saw Leo and Lexie sitting in the middle of the crowd. For a split second his eyes locked with Leo’s, and Hayden could see the raw pain in his man’s eyes, but it was quickly replaced with an ice-cold look. Hayden’s fingers softly flowed across the keyboard, and his sweet voice echoed through the microphone.

Notice me

Take my hand

Why are we

Strangers when

Our love is strong

Why carry on without me

Every time I try to fly

I fall without my wings

I feel so small

I guess I need you baby

And every time I see you in my dreams

I see your face, it’s haunting me

I guess I need you baby

It was taking a great deal of strength for Hayden to keep his emotions in check. He risked looking up into the crowd, and once again his eyes sought out Leo. Once again they looked into each other’s eyes, and Hayden held his tears back as the song continued.

I make believe

That you are here

It’s the only way

I see clear

What have I done

You seem to move on easy

And every time I try to fly

I fall without my wings

I feel so small

I guess I need you baby

And every time I see you in my dreams

I see your face, you’re haunting me

I guess I need you baby

There was no emotion showing through Leo’s eyes at all. Hayden forced himself to break the contact and focused on the keyboard. He wasn’t able to hold back his tears anymore, and at that point he really didn’t care. His throaty voice remained even as he forced himself to finish the song.

I may have made it rain

Please forgive me

My weakness caused you pain

And this song is my sorry

Ohhhh

At night I pray

That soon your face

Will fade away

And every time I try to fly

I fall without my wings

I feel so small

I guess I need you baby

And every time I see you in my dreams

I see your face, you’re haunting me

I guess I need you baby

The last note hung hauntingly over the crowd. The audience had been pulled into some kind of spell by Hayden’s voice. They sat in awe at the raw emotions that had been put on display for them. Hayden didn’t wait for a reaction from the crowd, or from Leo. He quickly exited the stage and made his way through the house.

People tried to stop Hayden to congratulate him, and a few had even tried to talk him into doing another song. Hayden politely declined and got out as fast as he could. His tears continued to fall the entire way back to his cold and empty dorm room. He didn’t even bother turning on any of the lights in his room. Hayden simply collapsed on the bed and continued to cry.

Hayden didn’t know if Leo understood his words, or if in fact he even cared. His heart felt empty, and Hayden knew that only one person could take care of that. The problem remained though that he had lost Leo…possibly forever.

?

Lexie slowly walked across the Quad and looked at the cloudless night sky. Thousands of stars seemed to be out, and their light twinkled down on her. She tried to keep her mind from wandering, but her thoughts continued to go back to Hayden’s performance the previous night. His pain was so clear that it burned her heart. She wished there was some way she could solve the problem and take away both of their pain, but that wasn’t a possibility.

Lexie quickly learned that Hayden was not a topic of conversation for Leo. Anytime she tried to bring it up he had either ignored her or blatantly changed the subject. She slowly made her way up to her dorm room, and Lexie pretty much knew what to expect. Leo would most likely be zoned out watching television or he would already be asleep. That had turned into Leo’s nightly routine.

Needless to say Lexie was surprised too not only find Leo awake, but he also wasn’t watching television either. He was sitting at her computer, and she could see that the damn video was playing. He was drinking a beer, and Lexie noticed a few empty cans were already scattered across her desk.

“Sweetie, what are you doing?” Lexie laid a hand on his shoulder.

“Watching the love of my life rip my heart out.” Leo quietly mumbled.

“God damn it, Leo. You HAVE to STOP this!” Lexie slammed her hand down on the desk. Leo paused the video and looked up at her. “You’re going to drive yourself crazy if you keep watching this damn thing.”

“I’m already fucking crazy, Lexie.” Leo glanced away. “I’m trying to figure out what I did wrong. Why do I still love him, Lexie? After everything that’s happened I can’t stop loving him.”

Leo hugged Lexie’s waist and buried his head in her stomach. She gently stroked his hair and tried to calm him down. She wished that Leo would just take her advice and talk to Hayden. If they couldn’t get past what happened, they could at least get some closure with everything that was going on. Lexie glanced down and something caught her eye.

“Leo…” She shook his shoulder to get his attention. “Leo!”

“What?” Leo glanced up at his best friend.

“Do you remember when we were at your parents for your mom’s birthday and stayed up late talking?” Lexie asked with her eyes still glued on the computer.

“Yeah…so?” Leo didn’t understand what her point was.

“You never mentioned that Hayden was uncircumcised.” Lexie glanced back down at Leo. “I can’t believe you forgot to mention that.”

“I didn’t mention it, Lexie, because Hayden is circumcised.” Leo sighed. “He’s got a nice, thick, fat cut cock. Do we really need to talk about it?”

“We definitely do, twin.” Lexie pointed at the paused video. “That guy Benjamin is blowing in the video has a foreskin.”

“What?!” Leo yelled. His gaze snapped to the video screen. Leo couldn’t believe it. He had watched the fucking video at least a hundred times, and he never noticed it. “Fuck me, Lexie. You know what this means…”

“Yup.” Lexie sighed. “That isn’t Hayden.”

Chapter Twelve

Lexie sat down on the edge of her bed as Leo restarted the video. Their eyes remained locked on the action to figure out what was going on. There was no sound, but the video quality was clear enough to see what was happening. They watched as Benjamin entered the dorm room with his arm around Hayden’s waist. Leo had just assumed they were holding on to each other, but Lexie knew otherwise.

“Hayden got sick at the bar that night.” Lexie explained. “That’s why Benji’s arms are around him. He’s holding him up.” Lexie pointed at the screen. “See, right there, you can see that Hayden’s stumbling a bit.”

The pair watched as Benji helped undress Hayden and then laid him down on the bed. The camera focus then changed to a side view of the bed. Benji took off his clothes and eased his body across the already nude figure on the bed. The guy’s head was facing away from the camera, but hair cut and color looked identical to Hayden’s. In fact, the man’s body was practically identical to Hayden’s. Leo slowed down the video as it zoomed in on Benji giving the man a blowjob.

It was clearly obvious that the man was uncircumcised. Why hadn’t they realized that before? Leo berated himself over and over again for missing such a detail. He was so caught up in the fact that he saw Benji undressing Hayden, he never really bothered to focus much on the other details in the video. Lexie leaned over and paused the video again, just as Benji was lifting the man’s legs over onto his shoulders.

“Look, right there!” Lexie pointed to a desk that could barely been seen in the background behind Benji’s body. “From the angle of the video, we should see your television stand because your desk is setup by the windows. Leo…” Lexie paused and took a deep breath. “That isn’t your room.”

“Fuck, what have I done?” Leo buried his face in his hands. “If I would have just taken Hayden with us that weekend, then this would have never happened! This is all my fault. How can I even try to apologize for this?”

“Leo?” Lexie was rubbing his back to calm him down when a thought came to her.

“What twin?” Leo asked.

“What was the email address that sent this to you?” Lexie looked at him curiously.

“I don’t remember, I really didn’t pay much attention to it.” Leo quickly pulled up his email.

“Wait a second.” Lexie saw the account he was accessing. “This was sent to your home email? I assumed you got this at your school account. Why didn’t you see this while we were at your parents’ house? Didn’t you check your email while we were there?”

“No. I didn’t have time. Besides, I was a bit too worried about the fight with Hayden to think of anything else.” Leo sighed. He quickly scrolled through his old email and found it. “Here it is. It came from Ark2587.”

“That doesn’t sound familiar.” Lexie bit her lip in concentration. “Though this does narrow down the list of people that could have sent you that video. You really haven’t given that address out here.”

“Besides the fact that his video was expertly edited.” Leo glanced over at his twin. “I need to talk to Hayden. Explain what’s going on.”

“We have to find Benji too.” Lexie nodded in agreement. “We have to get to the bottom of this.”

“Do you think Hayden will forgive me?” Leo’s voice quaked in fear.

“We’ll have to go see, won’t we, twin?” Lexie squeezed Leo’s shoulder. “I think once he hears everything, he’ll forgive you.”

?

Hayden sat in his room and was trying to complete his work for another term paper. His life was practically unbearable to begin with since Leo left, but classes just made things all the more difficult. He was finding it nearly impossible to concentrate on anything for more than a minute. Hayden had decided to take a break and had just lit a cigarette when there was a knock at his door. Hayden sighed and went to open the door.

“Benji.” Hayden’s voice was cold and emotionless. Concern filled Hayden though when he took in the rumbled and disheveled look of his friend. “Are you okay?” Hayden pulled him inside.

“No.” Benji sat down on the edge of the bed. “My gram passed away. That’s why I haven’t been here in a few weeks. I had to deal with a lot of family shit.”

“Oh my God, Benji, I’m so sorry.” Hayden sat down and hugged his friend. “I wish I could have been there for ya, bud.”

“It’s okay, Hayden.” Benji leaned against Hayden’s side. “I appreciate the thoughts, bro.”

Hayden was completely torn inside because as much as he wanted to know what the fuck happened between them, it just didn’t seem like the right time to ask. How could he put Benji through any more after losing his gram?

“Where’s Leo and Lexie?” Benji asked after he composed himself. “I expected to find all three of you together since y’all are practically attached at the hip.”

“Leo and I aren’t together anymore.” Hayden quietly replied.

“Oh my God, Hayden. Why?” Benji’s face was etched with concern.

“He found out that we had slept together.” Hayden got up and moved towards the window. “It seems that you video taped the whole thing, and someone sent it to Leo.”

“What the hell are you talking about?” Benji grabbed Hayden’s shoulder and spun him around. “We’ve never slept together.”

“I guess you were too drunk to remember, Benji.” Hayden replied. “That night you found me at the bar and had to bring me home we fucked around. I woke up butt ass naked, and then there’s the whole video proof thing.”

“Hayden, don’t you remember what happened?” Benji asked. “Probably not. You were so fucking out of it. You threw up all over yourself outside the dorm, bro. I got you in here and stripped you down before I put you to bed. I didn’t want you waking up covered in shit. I admit that it was tempting to see that hot body of yours, but nothing happened.”

“But I saw the video.” Hayden was shocked. Could Benji be telling the truth?

“Dude, I still have your clothes at my dorm. I took them with me and washed them for you. I didn’t want you to have to deal with it.” Benji rubbed Hayden’s shoulder. “I think I need to see this damn video. I may have fucked up in the past, Hayden, but drunk or not, I would have never done anything like that. I know how much you love Leo.”

Before Hayden could say anything else the door to his room slammed open. An excited Leo and Lexie ran into the room. They were both out of breath, and Leo was carrying his laptop with him.

“Thank God you’re both here.” Lexie panted. “We need to talk.” She paused to try and catch her breath. “Damn it, Leo, did you have to fucking make me sprint all the way over here.”

“What is going on?” Hayden asked. He couldn’t understand what was happening. What the hell was Leo doing here? And why wasn’t he shooting dirty looks at him?

“It wasn’t you in the video, Hayden.” Leo said after catching his breath.

“What are you talking about?” Hayden gasped.

“I told you we didn’t sleep together, Hayden.” Benji smiled at them.

Leo flipped open the laptop and quickly brought up the video. He scrolled through it until he got the where he wanted. Leo paused the video and pointed out the fact that the guy in the video wasn’t cut. Hayden’s eyes bulged at the realization. He knew that he couldn’t have cheated on Leo!

“If that isn’t me, then who is it?” Hayden asked. “Cause it sure as hell looks like me.”

“His name is Steve. He’s some guy I picked up at a bar after I dropped you off here that night Hayden.” Benji looked pissed as hell. “What I want to know is who the fuck got cameras into our dorm rooms?”

“What do you mean?” Hayden looked curiously at his old friend.

“Because it’s obvious in the beginning that we’re in your room, Hayden, because it was obviously you.” Benji scratched his head. “But later when all the sex is happening, that’s me and Steve, back at my room.”

“Someone went to a lot of trouble to edit all of this together to make it look like the two of you had sex.” Lexie pointed out. “I think we should swing by the Arts building, and see if we can find any film majors. It has to be someone on campus because they had to get access to your dorm rooms.”

“I’ll go with you, Lexie. I want to find out who the fuck did this.” Benji smiled and gave Hayden a hug. He whispered in his ear. “Good luck, my friend.”

Lexie gave Hayden a huge hug as well. She was happy that things could finally be resolved between her two friends. It was obvious someone was trying to fuck around with them, and she hoped they would work through this and get back together. Hayden watched as Lexie and Benji left, and for the first time in weeks, Hayden was alone with Leo.

Hayden wasn’t even sure what to say. So much had happened, and he didn’t want to go through the pain of relieving all of it. They both knew the truth, and he was sure that Leo was in as much pain as he was. Knowing the type of caring person that Leo was Hayden was positive that Leo was probably beating himself up big time over everything.

For the first time, in a long time, Hayden could see love burning fiercely in Leo’s eyes. The coldness was gone, and it had been replaced with a warmth that made Hayden’s heart swell with joy.

“Hayden, I don’t even know where to begin apologizing.” Leo took a slow towards him but stopped. “I’m so sorry that I doubted you, and for hitting you. I just…”

“I don’t want to do this.” Hayden interrupted. He saw the look of pain that flashed through Leo’s eyes. “Leo, can we just skip all that, and could you just kiss me, please?”

Leo wasted no time in getting to Hayden and crushing their lips together. They clung to each other and practically sucked the breath out of each other. The last few weeks melted away as they shared each other again. The kiss soon took on a force of its own, and their clothes were quickly being pulled off of each other.

Leo pushed Hayden down onto the bed and began covering his body with kisses. Hayden arched against his lover’s hot, wet mouth. His body trembled from Leo’s touch, a touch he thought he’d never feel again.

“Leo…” Hayden breathed. “I need you. I need to feel you inside me.” Leo started to stand up to get some lube out of their nightstand, but Hayden roughly pulled him down and wrapped his legs around him. “I’m not fucking waiting.”

Leo gasped as Hayden started to rub and thrust against his hard, aching cock. His heart pounded from the sensations Hayden was causing. It was only a few minutes before Leo had dripped enough to allow his cock to slide easily across Hayden’s hole. Hayden locked eyes with his lover as he reached down and lined up Leo’s cock with his hot hole.

“Baby, I don’t want to hurt you.” Leo panted in his ear.

“I can take a little pain, Leo. Don’t worry about it.” Hayden pushed back against the rock hard dick, and it sunk a few inches it.

Hayden arched as pain shot through him, but it wasn’t anything he couldn’t handle. He needed Leo so damn badly, and there was nothing that would stop him. Leo tried to remain as still as possible to allow Hayden to adjust, but his boyfriend was grinding up against him. Leo’s cock slowly sunk all the way into Hayden’s tight, sweet hole.

“Well, we won’t have to wait long to find that out.” Noah replied as they walked towards the door to their psychology class.

The duo walked into the classroom and chose two seats in the middle to sit in. They learned last semester that Professor Mitchell hated it when people sat in the back of the room. Leo and Noah didn’t want to sit in the hot zone either. The hot zone was the first few rows of seats, and the professor normally called on those people to answer most of his questions.

The two of them quietly chatted with each other until the professor showed up. He walked into the room with an overwhelming air of confidence and set his briefcase down on the desk. He leaned up against the front of his desk with his arms crossed over his chest and didn’t even look at the students. Instead, he kept his gaze trained on the ceiling of the classroom. After a few minutes all of the students were glancing up to see what was so interesting.

“What is so interesting on the ceiling?” The professor’s voice carried through the classroom.

All of the students immediately looked at him to find out that he was looking at them instead of the ceiling. Professor Mitchell paced back and forth in front of the first row and watched his students. A small smile appeared on his face when he saw the confused look that appeared on most of their faces.

“Warner.” The professor said looking up at Leo.

“Yes sir?” Leo asked.

“What was your reason for looking up at the ceiling?” Professor Mitchell questioned.

“I saw that your interest was drawn there, sir, so I looked to see what captured your attention.” He smoothly answered.

“Today, class, we are going to be learning about reality and perception.” The professor continued without even acknowledging Leo’s response. “You’re going to find out that what you consider is real, possibly isn’t; it’s just your perception of it. You could see someone who looks totally happy, but in reality, on the inside, that person is being torn apart. Perception versus reality.”

A little over an hour later Leo and Noah were heading back to meet Lexie. Dr. Mitchell had assigned a ton of homework for them and the pair bitched about their slave driver of a teacher along the way.

“He definitely has a superiority complex, that’s for sure.” Leo sighed. “I wonder if he’s a distant cousin of yours or something, Noah.”

“That man would be lucky to be the dirt that surrounds my family tree, asshole.” Noah snapped back. “There’s a huge difference between my family and the professor. He just thinks that he’s better than everyone, whereas we actually are.”

“Well, that’s your perception of it at least.” Leo wearily sighed as he pushed a stray strand of hair off of his chiseled face. “Doesn’t it hurt your back to kiss your own ass like that, Noah?”

“Don’t even get started on me, Warner.” Noah glared at his friend. “You and I both know that we are of a higher class than most people. We come from wealthy families that are steeped in heritage and class. I can’t help it that you can’t see that.”

Leo didn’t even bother trying to respond to his best friend’s words. It was definitely a losing battle, and it was an argument that they had time and time again. It was moments and conversations like that that really made Leo question his friendship with Noah Radcliff. Noah hadn’t always been that bad though. It seemed that as they got older, Noah’s family put more and more importance on their wealth and stature.

The whole situation made Leo’s head hurt most of the time. Noah had been conditioned to the point that nothing was going to change his mind. Lexie and Leo had tried time after time to do just that, and it never worked. Deep down in his heart Leo felt bad for Noah because his friend would never see their side of the argument. His parents’ brainwashing skills were just too good.

“So what should we do tonight?” Leo asked with a smile hoping to change the conversation.

“You’re not getting out this that easily, Leo.” Noah grabbed his friend by the arm to stop him. “If people didn’t think we were rich and popular then we would be nothing. How can I get that through that thick, stubborn head of yours?”

“You’re not going to, Noah. That doesn’t matter.” Leo sighed.

“Do you care to place a wager on that, Warner?” Noah asked his friend.

“What are you talking about?” Leo cautiously asked.

“I’ll wager that I can take anyone in this school and make them popular.” Noah said with an evil grin. “By the time I’m done they’ll be the coolest person on campus and everyone will want to be their friend. Then you can see first hand that what people think of you really does matter.”

“I’m not going to play around with someone’s life, Noah.” Leo turned to leave, but Noah grabbed his arm again.

“If I lose, Leo, which I don’t think I will, then I’ll never bring up money or popularity ever again.” Noah said.

“And if you win?” Leo asked.

“The fact that I’ll be able to gloat about being right is more than enough incentive, my friend.” Noah grinned.

“And if I don’t agree to the bet?” Leo questioned as he looked at his friend.

“Then I’ll keep bringing up the subject until you do agree.” Noah’s grin widened even more.

Leo couldn’t decide what to do. He knew that they would be playing with fire with the bet. They would be interfering with someone else’s life, but on the other hand, he had the opportunity to shut Noah up for good about money and popularity. Leo knew it was a decision he would most likely regret, but he couldn’t stop himself from taking the opportunity.

“Fine. It’s a bet.” Leo held out his hand to Noah, who quickly shook it. “There is one condition though.”

“What’s that?” Noah’s eyebrow arched in question.

“You have two weeks, Noah. That’s it.” Leo said.

“That’s fine with me, Warner.” Noah responded. “You can’t tell Lexie about the bet either. Otherwise, you automatically lose. You know she’ll go ballistic about this.”

“Noah, do you really think we can keep this from her?” Leo asked incredulously.

“Either we do, or you lose. Agreed?” Noah demanded.

“Fine.” Leo agreed. “So, who are you going to pick?”

“There are so many people to choose from.” Noah tapped his finger against his chin. “I know! I pick that shabby guy you knocked down today. What was his name? Henry?”

“It was Hayden.” Leo replied with a sigh.

“Hayden! That’s right.” Noah grinned wickedly. “He doesn’t know it yet, but today is his lucky day.”

“*For author information check out my Literotica profile* Thank you for reading Chapter One!”