Date: Sun, 27 Feb 2000 01:10:38 GMT
From: Irda Majere <jack_kea@hotmail.com>
Subject: Something Else Part V-VI

Well, I've finally finished parts five and six. I hope you'll like it,
constant reader! And don't forget to send all comments to:
jack_kea@hotmail.com  Watch out for the story Bad Boys, which I'm cowriting
with the lovely Diana, author of the incredible masterpiece Intimate
Stranger, a story which I strongly recommend! And if there's anyone out
there who feels I should add to Ronan's Exploits, TELL ME! I just don't feel
motivated enough to add to it...

Disclaimer: This story is pure fiction. I do not mean to imply anything
            about the sexualities of Ronan Keating from Boyzone, Shane
            Filan and Nicholas Byrne from Westlife, or the lovely mrs.
            Keating, Yvonne Keating. So there. Don't read if you're not
            supposed to. Go away if you don't like gay/adult themes.


Something Else
by Irda Majere


Part V


When Nicholas stepped out of Areq's
room, he found Ronan sitting against the wall, crying softly.

"What's the
matter with him?" he asked the twins who were still at their posts, guarding
their boss' door. They just shrugged, obviously not caring if some kid
decided to cry his heart out right beside them. Nicholas rolled his eyes at
their indifference, sighed and went to talk to the upset youngster.

"Hey,
Ro," he said cheerfully as he sat down beside him, "what's with the crying?
You got the job, you know."

Ronan looked up, feeling ashamed of letting the
other boy see him like this. He tried to smile through his tears at this
news, but he still wasn't sure whether he wanted this job or not.

"It's
nothing," he said, wiping away his tears with the heel of his hand. "I'll be
okay."

Nic really wanted to press the matter and find out what was
bothering the poor kid, but he knew this was neither the time nor the
place.

"Come on," Nicholas said as he stood up and held out his hand for
Ronan. "Let's go home."

Ronan looked up at the older boy, hesitating a bit
before taking his hand.

To Ronan's surprise, Nicholas didn't let go of his
hand as he led him out of the club towards the parking lot. But it felt kind
of comforting in a way, so he didn't mind.

"Come on, Areq's ride is over
here," Nic said as they hurried towards the black car which apparently
belonged to Ronan's new boss.

It was quite dark outside and the rain had
made them hurry inside for shelter, so Ronan didn't notice that Areq's
'ride' was no less than a long, luxurious limousine. His mouth dropped open
as he viewed the spacious insides of the motor.

"Get used to it," Nic said,
smiling. "You'll be driving in this thing every day from now on."

Ronan
quickly closed his mouth and proceeded to stare out the window. He couldn't
deny that he liked the thought of going around in such a car. And since
Areq's car was of this quality, what would his house be like? It was obvious
that Ronan was going to live in luxury, but at what price? Would he be his
boss' sex toy, a plaything used for all his needs and pleasures? He had to
admit that he had a certain physical attraction  towards this man. After
all, Areq was a very good-looking man, to say the least. But if he was to
sleep with him, he didn't want it to be some sort of quick relief. He wanted
something a bit more special than that, being his first time and all, but he
knew he wouldn't get it. Ronan decided he'd make the best of what he had and
look on the bright side of this new life which lay ahead of him. At least
he'd get some food and a bed to sleep in.

Suddenly Ronan felt a hand on
his shoulder and jumped at the interruption.

"Didn't mean to startle you,
baby, but we're there. Come on, I'll show you around."

Ronan ignored the
fact that Nic had called him 'baby', even though it kind of disturbed him.
He got out of the limo which was parked inside a huge garage, and followed
Nicholas into the main building.

Areq's house was just as impressive as the
man himself, and reminded the boy strongly of its owner. The furniture was
smooth and quiet in a somber sort of way, but still exquisite in every
detail.

"This way!" Nicholas called from the stairs which he had already
ascended half way, making Ronan quicken his pace.

When they had reached the
second floor, Nic led Ronan to his new room which turned out to be just as
spacious and well furnished as the rest of the house. But Ronan's favourite
part was definitely the antique-like four-poster-bed, which was huge with
white satin sheets and lots of big, inviting pillows. He almost fell asleep
just looking at it, but didn't dare say anything about being tired to Nic,
who was busy pouring himself a drink from a bottle he'd taken from the
room's mini-fridge.

"Want one?" he said, offering the glass of whiskey to
the younger boy, who declined.

"No, thanks," Ronan said politely, "but I'll
have some water if you have it."

"Sure," Nic replied and got a bottle of
mineral water from the fridge. He poured some into it and handed it to
Ronan, who accepted gratefully. He was quite thirsty, and now he thought
about it, very hungry, too. As if reading his thoughts, Nicholas asked if
he'd like some late-night snacks and Ronan accepted. The two blondes left
the room and returned downstairs where the kitchen was situated.

While they
were eating, they heard someone come in and slam the door after them with a
loud bang, making Ronan jump. Nic merely rolled his eyes.

"It's obvious
who's pissed off today," he said with a sigh. Ronan realized who he was
talking about, and already dreaded seeing that mountain of a man in a bad
mood.

Then Areq came storming into the kitchen, his long leather coat
streaming behind him like a devil's cape.

"Where is my poor excuse of a
brother?" he asked in a voice which was low but deadly. It made Ronan want
to disappear to anywhere but here.

"I don't know," Nic said as if Areq had
asked the question in his happiest voice. "Haven't seen him."

This made
Areq pick up the nearest object, a big glass bowl full of ice, and throw it
with all his might into the wall. Glass and ice covered the marble floor but
the black man didn't notice. His lips were pressed together and he was
breathing hard, his gaze locked on the younger man.

"Wow, Areq, cool down!
" Nicholas said, seemingly not at all intimidated by the big man's actions.
He seemed more annoyed than scared. "Cool down! It can't be that big a deal,
you're scaring the poor kid." He motioned to Ronan who was almost shaking
with fear and trying to stop himself from running out.

Areq ignored what
Nicholas said and instead grabbed him by the back of his neck and threw him
out of the kitchen.

"Go find him!" he yelled, "and don't come back until
you do!"

Then, as if remembering the other boy's presence, Areq turned
around to face the frightened youth. He stared at Ronan for a while with a
glint in his eye which the boy didn't like. Then he took a step towards him,
making Ronan cower in his seat. But suddenly he stopped in his tracks, as if
he'd changed his mind about whatever it was he was going to do.

"Go to your
room," the big man ordered in a menacing tone. Ronan hesitated for a second,
still in shock at the black man's outburst. When Areq saw Ronan didn't obey,
he grabbed Ronan by the arm and pulled him over to the stairs.

"Get your
ass up there before I change my mind!" he yelled at him as he threw him onto
the steps. Ronan quickly scrambled to his feet and ran up to his room,
taking care to lock the door behind him. He sat down on the bed and put his
head in his hands.

'What have I got myself into?' he asked himself. 'I
can't live like this, I must get out of here.' But he knew he couldn't
leave. He could probably sneak out if he wanted to, Areq probably wouldn't
even care if he found Ronan gone in the morning and certainly wouldn't go
after him. But would there be anything better for him out there? Living on
the streets, stealing and begging for food? Staying may not have been an
attractive option, what with that lunatic in the house and everything, but
it sure beat living on the street.

Ronan sighed and got up. He went to the
bathroom and splashed some water in his face, as if to clear his mind of
this overbearing situation. He found an unopened toothbrush in one of the
cabinets and took the liberty of using it. The youth didn't know brushing
his teeth could feel so good, but when you haven't been in a private
restroom for weeks, a simple thing like a clean sink is a luxury.

After he
was done in the bathroom, he made his way back into the bedroom. When he had
removed his uncomfortable leather outfit, he crawled under the silken sheets
and allowed himself to enjoy the comfort of finally being in a bed. But that
moment of bliss didn't last long. The sound of a door being slammed shut was
a rude reminder of his predicament, and it took Ronan much longer to fall
asleep than he'd thought.

In the morning, Ronan was awakened by a gentle
knock on the door.

"Who is it?" he called out in a sleepy voice.

"It's
Nicholas!" came the unfittingly cheerful reply. "You up yet?"

"Just a
minute!" Ronan called back as he got up and put his trousers on. When he was
half-decent, he went and opened the door.

"Hi!" Nic said as he let himself
into the room. "Don't tell me you just woke up," he exclaimed, "it's almost
three o'clock!"

"Give me a break," Ronan said with a yawn. "I didn't fall
asleep 'til at about six o'clock this morning."
"Yeah, well," Nic said as he
handed the other boy his clothes, "you better hurry up and get dressed. You
got to go to work!"

"But-" Ronan began, but was cut off by
Nicholas.

"Questions later," he said as they hurried down the stairs, "the
kids will start getting pretty pissed off soon. You're lucky it was my night
off, I'd kill you if you were this late picking me up!"

Ronan had
absoloutely no idea whatsoever what Nic was on about. But like the older boy
had said, questions later, so he just followed Nicholas to the limo and got
in. They had hardly sat down when the driver took off, getting directions on
where to go from Nicholas.

"Now can I ask where we're going?" Ronan
ventured as the car sped down the streets of Dublin.

"We're going to pick
up Areq's kids," Nic replied simply.

"What?!" Ronan said in amazement.
"He's got kids?"

Nicholas rolled his eyes.

"I mean, we're going to pick up
his employees, the boys and girls who have been working their asses off all
night for the big guy."

Ronan was starting to suspect what Nic meant, and
he didn't like it one bit.

"What do you mean, his employees?" he asked
slowly, fearing the answer.

"Didn't you know Areq's a pimp?" Nic asked,
obviously surprised Ronan hadn't been filled in on this detail.

"No!" Ronan
said, raising his voice, "I had no idea my boss was a pimp!"

"Jeez, calm
down, Ro. It's no big deal, it's not as if you'll be selling yourself."

"No
big deal! I'm going to be working for a criminal, and you say it's no big
deal??"

"Hey," Nic said in a tone which grabbed Ronan's attention. "You
want to go back to living on the street? Don't worry, Eddie here will drop
you off wherever you like."


Nic was right and they both knew it. Ronan
needed this job, even though his boss happened to be a pimp. But then
suddenly Ronan remembered something Nic had said.

"What did you mean, if
you had been working last night?" he asked. "You saying you're working as a
prostitute?"

"Prostitute.... You don't hear that word very often. But yeah,
I'm a whore. But I don't come cheap, you know," Nic replied, not taking this
half as seriously as the younger
boy, who was absolutely astounded at this
information.

Then Nic started talking about other, more trivial things,
making Ronan momentarily forget about his new friend's occupation.


Part
VI


"The one we're picking up first is called Shane, but we all all him
Filan. That's his surname," Nic explained as the limo pulled up by the
entrance of a fancy hotel. Shortly the car door opened and in came a dark
haired boy of about twenty years. He was about Ronan's height, but still
looked smaller somehow. His build made him look it, as did the innocence in
his expression. He sat down next to Nic, glancing somewhat shyly at Ronan.
The younger boy had difficulty believing this man was selling himself, he
seemed too sweet and shy.

"Hey, honey!" Nicholas said to his friend and the
two men kissed each other briefly on the lips. "How did it go?"

Filan
shrugged. "It was okay. The guy wasn't too hot but the tips were good. And
he ordered room service," he said with a smile. The two men were like
teenage girls, talking as if Filan had been on a first date. Ronan noticed
he was being forgotten, and started gettin uncomfortable. Then finally Nic
rememberd him.

"Oh, Filan, this is Ronan. Areq's new boy. He'll be picking
us up from now on, so you two get to know each other." Then he whispered in
Filan's ear: "Cute, isn't he? He is just sooo Areq's type, I think the big
guy is already crazy about him." Filan giggled and nodded in agreement
before putting his hand out to Ronan.

"Nice to meet you," he said with a
smile. At that moment, Ronan suddenly felt incredibly sorry for the dark
haired youth. He deserved something so much better than this, he didn't
belong there. He shook the hand, returning the smile fondly.

"Nice to meet
you, too," he replied before asking: "Who are we picking up next?"

"Seth,"
Nic said meaningfully, and Ronan couldn't help noticing Filan roll his eyes
and smile at the mention of that name. "You better watch out for him, he's
quite a character.... You see, he's a diagnosed nymphomaniac."

At this
Filan burst out laughing.

"No, he's not," he said slapping Nic's leg, "he
just likes sex a lot. Well, too much maybe, but he hasn't been diagnosed
anything!"

Ronan was getting rather worried about meeting this Seth
character, and when the limo stopped and the car door opened again, he
didn't know what to expect. He half expected a monster to step into the car
and tear all his clothes off there and then.

He was quite surprised to see
a small, delicately built young man with longish black hair, wearing make up
and black PVC hot pants, step into the limo. Without a word, Seth sat
himself down on Nic's lap.

"So who's this?" he asked smiling.

"This is
Areq's new boy," Nicholas replied, not at all surprised at Seth's seating
arrangement.

"Hi, I'm Seth," the newcomer said as he stuck out his small
hand which, Ronan noticed, was decorated with black nail polish. Ronan shook
it and replied. "Nice to meet you, I'm Ronan."

Seth smiled. "Cute name!"
His eyes lingered on Ronan for a moment before he shifted his attention back
to his colleagues. "So how were your dates?" he asked, making himself
comfortable on Nic's lap.

The three friends proceeded to talking about
their work, leaving Ronan alone with his thoughts. He hardly noticed when
the car stopped once again, but was brought to attention when someone said
his name.

"Ronan, this is Yvonne," Nicholas was saying, gesturing to a
blonde woman who had entered the limo. Ronan recognized her as the woman
from the office, the one who had with Shaqur's help persuaded him to take
the job. As he shook her hand, her face suddenly rang a bell. 'What did Nic
say her name was?' he thought to himself. 'Yvonne wasn't it?' It was as if
he'd known this woman when he was younger, but he couldn't really remember
where from, exactly. Ronan could tell from her expression that she
remembered him, too. Suddenly she cried: "Now I remember! You're that cute
kid that came with his dad on the truck! You were only like thirteen then,
weren't you?"

Ronan was astounded. Yvonne Connelly, the girl he'd got along
so well with when they were kids? The one all his friends thought he'd
fancied? He couldn't believe it, especially not that she was now in this
line of work.

"Funny seeing you again, I haven't seen you in years!" she
was saying. Ronan didn't really know what to say, this wasn't the best of
conditions for a reunion. 'So, what's it like being a hooker? Bet it pays
well!'

"Yeah, weird, isn't it?" he managed, hoping it wouldn't show how
uncomfortable he was. But he could tell from her face that she'd noticed.
Her smile faded and she dropped her gaze to the floor.

"I know what you're
thinking, Ronan. What's a nice country girl like me doing in a job like
this?" She was obviously quite upset at his reaction. "Well, things aren't
always that simple!" she snapped. Ronan blushed slightly, not daring to meet
her gaze. Everyone in the car went silent, hardly daring to breathe. When
they had been driving for a while, the car stopped again. Finally Seth broke
the silence.

"Well, here's Everlyn. Let's not make her think someone died."
The car door opened, and in came another blonde woman, this one much smaller
than Yvonne, and even more beautiful than the taller woman. That's what
Ronan thought, anyway. Though Yvonne was a very attractive woman, Everlyn
was just beautiful, pure and simple. Her every feature was like an angel's,
and her lithe body and soft, creamy skin could tempt even a gay man. But her
face showed arrogance and too much self assurance for Ronan's taste.
Yvonne's soft, gentle manner was much more appealing. She sat herself down
between Ronan and Yvonne, laying her head on the other woman's
shoulder.

"Take me home, Eddie," she called to the driver, "I need some
sleep!" The driver chuckled.

"Yes, miss Everlyn," he said in a mockingly
inferior tone. Everlyn paid the driver's comment no heed, and snuggled up
closer to her friend, who wrapped an arm around her comfortingly.

"Aren't
you going to see hello to the new addition to our family, miss Everlyn?" Nic
said, indicating Ronan with his hand. This title, 'miss Everlyn', seemed to
be a continuing joke among his coworkers. The girl raised her head
slightly.

"Hi," she said. "Are you Areq's new boy?" Ronan sighed inwardly,
getting pretty tired of being called 'Areq's new boy'.

"Yeah, I'm his new
assistant. My name's Ronan." Everlyn barely nodded in acknowledgment before
laying her head on Yvonne's lap, placing her legs across Ronan's lap. The
girl's arrogance annoyed him, but he didn't say anything so that not to
offend anyone on his first day in his new job. He wanted to make a good
first impression, even though his impression of them was far from promising.
'You must give them a chance,' he thought to himself, 'the last thing you
need right now is enemies.'

Ronan didn't join in on the convesation which
took place for the rest of the journey. He tried to stay out of the friends'
discussoins, which revolved mostly about work. And since Ronan had himself
never been a prostitute, he didn't have much to contribute, anyway.

After
quite a while, the limo finally entered the huge garage at Areq's house,
bringing a quiet sigh of relief from Ronan. He was almost getting
claustrophobic sitting in that car for so long, and the thought of having to
do that everyday made him groan inwardly. He hoped to disappeare up to his
room unseen, but was spotted by Areq who was sitting in the living
room.

"Ronan!" he called, "come here." Ronan obeyed reluctantly. He just
wanted to go up to his room and lie on his bed for a while, he'd had enough
of these people for the day.

"Yes, Areq?" he asked as he entered the living
room.

"How did it go?" Areq asked, gesturing to Ronan to take a seat. The
young man sat down beside his boss, perching nervously on the edge.

"Fine,"
he replied meekly. He couldn't really say he'd learned much on this trip,
but he dared not say that to Areq. God knew how he'd react.

The black man
said nothing for a while, making Ronan fidget in his seat. 'Does this mean
I'm supposed to leave?' he thought nervously. He desperately searched for
something to say, when Areq finally broke the silence.

"I know what the
kids are like around newcomers. Don't let them scare you, you'll get used to
them." He took a gulp from his drink before continuing. "If they bother you,
just tell me. I'll have a word with them." With that he stood up, quickly
followed by Ronan.

"Come on," the big man said.

"Where?" Ronan replied,
his heart sinking as he thought what the black man might be after.

As if
reading his thoughts, Areq replied: "Don't worry, I'm not going to hurt you
or anything. We're going shopping." Setting his glass down, he swiftly
walked out of the room with Ronan on his heels.

Ronan and Areq spent the
day in Dublin's finest clothes shops, buying a whole new wardrobe for the
new employee. Ronan's head was spinning. He'd never even been in those
shops, let alone dreamt he'd ever wear anything like all the fine clothing
Areq was giving him. Gucci shoes, Armani suits, Versace shirts.... The
blonde took care never to check the prices of the garments, he'd probably
have fainted.

Laden with tons of bags, the two men made their way home, the
younger smiling from ear to ear as he thought of all the wonderful things
his boss had bought him. They had bought not only clothes, but they'd also
paid HMV a visit. Areq let Ronan buy all the cd's he wanted, plus a big
George Michael poster Ronan had been practiacally drooling over for the past
few months.

As they entered the house, Areq helped Ronan carry the bags up
to his room. Ronan began hanging his new clothes up in the closet, but was
interrupted by the bigger man.

"Why don't you try some of them on," he
said as he sat down on the bed. "I want to see how you look in them." Ronan
just smiled in reply and began removing his borrowed leather outfit. When
Areq saw he was having trouble with the zipper on his top, he got up and
walked up behind the blonde.

"Let me help you with that," he said as he
successfully removed Ronan's top. Ronan mumbled a quick thanks before
quickly putting on a shirt from one of the bags. It was a plain, black Gucci
shirt, and it fit him perfectly. When he'd done all the buttons, he removed
the trousers. Areq had not moved from his place behind him, making the youth
hurry even more with putting his trousers on. It was not until he was fully
clothed that he turned around to face the probing eyes behind him.

"How do
I look?" he said with a nervous smile. Areq looked him up and down before
replying.

"You need a jacket," he said. He picked up the Gucci bag Ronan
had taken the other clothes from and took out a black jacket to match the
trousers. He handed it to Ronan who put it on, completing the suit and
getting an approving smile from his boss.

"That's better," he said softly.
He then raised his hand and ran his fingers through Ronan's short, blond
hair. "But you should grow your hair, it would suit you much
better."

"Really?" Ronan replied with the same forced smile. "I've never
thought of growing my hair, maybe it would be a nice change." He was
speaking quickly and insecurely, hardly noticing what he was saying. Areq
just smiled.

"Well," he finally said, "you go and take a shower. We're
going to the club tonight, so wear something nice." Then he frowned
slightly, looking Ronan up and down. "We didn't but you any clubwear, did
we? I'll see if Nicholas has anything, you're the same size." With that he
left the room.

Ronan breathed a sigh of relief when Areq closed the door
behind him. His boss had this tendency to make Ronan nervous, just by
looking at him. It was obvious Areq wanted more from Ronan than he was ready
to give.....

Thanks for reading!
Send all comments to:
jack_kea@hotmail.com