Date: Fri, 30 Aug 2013 07:38:59 -0700 (PDT)
From: Kyle Bryson <bryson.kyle@yahoo.com>
Subject: One Step At A Time - 12

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Disclaimer: The following story may contain scenes of unprotected sex.
Always use caution when engaging in ANY sexual activity with a new or
unknown partner. Be honest with yourself... you might not know the other
person as well as you think and it just isn't worth the risk. Thanks for
reading and feel free to contact me with your comments at
bryson.kyle@yahoo.com

<><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><>

It's been a while since I've written, so - for my faithful readers - here's
a brief recap.  (Thanks to one reader, BH, for suggesting I do this.)

BRIEF RECAP

Marc is a wrestler and a singer at USF in Tampa.  Ryan, a TA for one of his
music professors introduced him to Joe's Club, a high-end all-male waiter,
all-male clientele establishment where the college-aged waiters wear only
an apron.  Marc becamae attracted to Ryan, realized that he is more
attracted to "the person" not the gender, so begins a relationship with
Ryan.  (Ok - that was WAY oversimplified - but read the previous chapters,
you slackers!)

Marc's closest-in-age brother, Joey, came-out when he was in high school.
On Joey's first date with another guy, a couple of guys from school taunt
the couple at the movie theater and chase them in their car causing Joey to
crash and die in the accident.  His date, Taylor, was unhurt.  Now, years
later, Taylor has transferred to USF and contacted Marc to see him.

Most recently, Marc went home to tell his parents and two younger brothers
that he's going-out with another college guy.

So, the story continues... (cue music, lights aaaand, action!)

<><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><>

I told Ryan I would call as soon as I was on my way, but he didn't answer.
Instead, he sent a text saying he was going for a run and that he'd see me
when I got to his place.

I'd taken a huge step with my family this weekend and needed to let it sink
in.  I was lucky.  I've heard of some parents going nuts when their son or
daughter tells them some form of "I'm gay" -- yelling, berating, kicking
them out of the house.  The reaction I got from my whole family was
different.  I smiled and whispered, "Thank you, Joey," as I looked up at
the roof of my car.

I was barely a mile down the road when my phone rang.

"Hey, Dad.  Did I forget something?"

"Hey, Sport.  No, no - nothing like that.  I meant to talk to you about
something, but..." (he cleared his throat) "we had other things to discuss,
I guess."

"You need me to come back?  I'm only 2 minutes away."  I started slowing
down and put my blinker on to do a U-turn.

"No, we can talk over the phone."

For the next few minutes, my Dad detailed the arrangements of my trust
fund's disbursement.  With all that was going-on with Ryan, I hadn't
thought about it in weeks.  I already knew the details - 10% on my 21st
birthday and 10% every year until age 25 when the entire fund would become
available.  The only stipulation was that I needed to be working in some
financial field.  If I'm not working in finance, then the 10% annual
disbursements would continue until the fund is fully dispersed.  If I begin
working in the financial field then I will get the balance of the
disbursement as long as I was older than 21.  I planned to work for my
Dad's company, so I didn't have to worry about that.  The problem was that
the funds were still being held-up.

"Do you need some money?" he asked.  I hesitated.  I probably had enough -
and I had to catch-up on my shifts at Joe's, but...

"Yes," I answered.  "I have some saved, but I don't know how long that will
hold-out."

I could tell he was smiling when he started talking again.  "I'll transfer
some into your account tomorrow and you can pay me back when you get it,
ok?"

I thanked him and we hung up.  I started thinking about ways to invest my
trust once it was disbursed.

<><><><>

"Lucy, I'm home."  I smiled thinking that I'd just entered my parents'
house the day before using the same phrase.

Ryan's house was oddly quiet.

"Ry?"  The patio door was closed, but I kicked my sandals off and walked
out there anyway.  He wasn't by the pool or anywhere out back.  I went to
the garage and his car was there, so I figured he was home.  "It seems like
someone wants to play, huh?"  I said loudly as I came back inside.  He was
obviously hiding from me... and I immediately got turned on.

"I wonder where he could be," I said even louder, just to make sure he
would hear me from his hiding place.

"Psst."  His playful sound came from the master bedroom, but I pretended
not to hear it.  Instead of heading to the master bedroom, I started
searching the other bedrooms - being loud and huffy... pretending to be
'aggravated' at having to find him, but I was taking my clothes off as I
went.  By the time I entered his bedroom, I was naked and my cock was hard
against my body, hugging my stomach.


"I wonder if he's in here," I said heading into the bathroom.  "Nope, not
in here.  Hmmm... how about over here?"  I headed for the closet, imagining
that's where he would be, but at the last moment I turned away.  A noise
escaped from behind the slatted doors - him shuffling or getting ready for
me to open the doors? I don't know, but - BINGO! - I now knew where he was
hiding.  "Maybe under the bed?" I got down on all fours and stuck my ass
way into the air toward the closet doors... making sure he could see me.
The bottom of the closet doors aren't slatted, so I knew he could only see
through the top of the doors.  I flattened out and crept backward toward
the closet... slowly inching my way hoping I could surprise him.

"AARRGGGHHH," I jumped up and yelled as I pulled open the closet doors,
lunging inside to get Ryan and catching him just as he started to fall
backward.  I grabbed him and, before he could even yell, I had my mouth was
over his and felt his breath in my mouth.  Our tongues were fighting each
other as his stubble scrubbed my lips and the smell of his skin worked its
way into my pores.

"Ohgod, I missed you," he said as we continued our kissing.

I lifted him off the ground as he wrapped his arms around my neck and legs
around my waist.  The tip of my cock was pressing underneath him right at
his taint, so I pushed my hips forward to feel the rough contact with his
body as I walked.  I lay Ryan back onto the bed, and he kept his legs
wrapped around my waist, so I pushed him forward... gripping his back with
one hand and cradling his neck with the other as we continued to kiss.  He
squirmed under me and my cock slipped up and connected with his.

We pulled our faces apart to breathe and he unwrapped his legs, stretching
out underneath me, so I rested my full weight on him... our arms stretched
out together, our hands and fingers interlocked, my legs on his, my chin on
his - chest, thighs, feet, abs - all our body parts pressed against each
other and I was focused on the feeling of my cock grinding into his pubic
hair... the passion between us was strong and our breathing was getting
heavy.

I felt like this was our first kiss... the fire was so incredible.  I could
taste the toothpaste in his mouth as I sucked on his tongue, feeling the
mint in my mouth and smiling as thoughts raced through my head.  He
squeezed my hands in his and I squeezed back as we thrust together -
driving our cocks into each other's bodies, his precum leaving a slick
trail for my cock against his body.  I loved how he pushed against
me... the strength in his arms and chest pulsing against my
strength... thrusting and squeezing - tensing his muscles against my body.
Ryan grabbed my head and pulled his face tighter into mine, pushing so hard
that my lips started to sting.  When I raised my head to breathe I could
see tears in his eyes.

"Hey, babe," he said as he lurched for my mouth again, biting my lip then
licking my lips and kissing my cheek, running his mouth to my earlobe and
putting his tongue inside my ear - making squirm.  I felt him shudder and
looked down at his face and kissed him then licked all the way to his
eyebrow, kissed my way across his forehead, licking the tear escaping from
his eye.

"Me, too," I said and went back for my mouth.

I felt his hands running down my neck and could feel him inspecting the
bones as he went down my spine, digging his fingertips into my muscles -
halfway between massaging and exploring.  His hands were sliding along my
sweaty skin and the feeling of our now slick bodies made me even hornier.

We stayed like that... kissing and licking, holding hands and working our
way over each others' bodies.  We tongued each other's nipples and bit into
each other's flesh... nibbling and biting - leaving marks that would last
for days afterward.  My dick felt like it was stretched so tight it would
burst and I ground it into his hip, leg or arm... whichever body part it
was touching at the moment.

Ryan reached under the pillow and grabbed a condom and lube and made a show
of it... letting me know that he was ready for me to fuck him.  I pushed
them aside and with a swift wrestling move I turned him onto his stomach.
I kissed his shoulders and licked into his armpit then kissed and nibbled
along the side of his ribs.  He alternated between laughing and moaning
depending on where my teeth landed.  I ran my tongue along his spine and
bit his ass, moving further onto the bed, pushing his legs apart and
positioning myself between his legs as he stretched out across the bed.

"Damn, I've missed you," I mumbled into his asshole.  I spread his cheeks
apart, digging my thumbs into the flesh, gripping and pulling his cheeks
apart.  I loved this - the clean smell and taste.  I pressed my face harder
into his ass and knew I was scraping that sensitive area with the stubble
on my chin.  I licked and pushed my tongue into his asshole as he pressed
back into me and opened his hole allowing me deeper access.  He was moaning
and I was moaning.  I hadn't planned to do this - had never wanted to do
this - but his ass looked so hot that I knew I wanted to taste him before I
fucked him.

"Wow," he said as my hands were in motion over his body.  I fondled his
balls and dick... kneaded my fingers into his glutes and legs.  I felt like
this was the first time I'd seen his body from this angle and I started
kissing and licking his legs, working my way to his feet.

"Roll over," I said, and as he did I grabbed one of his feet and brought it
to my mouth to kiss.

"Ohgod," he panted and I continued with his toes...

"This little piggy," I said, then sucked on his big toe, running my tongue
over and under.  "And this little piggy," as I switched to the next... "and
this little piggy... and this little piggy."  I continued until got to his
pinky toe.  "And this little piggy," I growled and bit his toe gently
before licking the top of his foot.  He moaned as he looked down and smiled
- his eyebrows raising making him look sinister and sexy all at the same
time.  I continued licking, up to his ankle and began crawling up his body,
his moist foot moving between my legs and making contact with my balls.

Ryan put his hands out for me and grabbed me to pull me down, bringing me
on top of him and we kissed again - passionate and hungry for each
other... rolling and laughing... both of us moving our balls out of the way
as we ground our bodies together - sucking and licking and kissing until my
face and chest were burning from the stubble on his face, both of our
chests turning pink from the stubble burn.

I glanced at the clock and noticed that we'd been in bed together for over
an hour, rolling, rubbing, kissing, licking, sucking... "I want you to fuck
me," he said as he straddled my face, my tongue in his ass again and my
cock in his mouth.

I heard the package open and he started rolling the condom down my dick.  I
grabbed the lube, put some on my fingers and and began working it into his
hole.

He moaned as my middle finger made contact with his prostate.  I pushed my
index finger in and felt him open up immediately as I brought two fingers
to his prostate.  "When you fuck me," he said, "that's where I want your
cock."  He moaned.  "Ohgod - yes... right there."  I rubbed my fingers
inside of him, feeling the tightness - feeling him squeeze my fingers with
his ass...moaning the whole time.  "I can't wait," he said and pulled away
from me to lay on his back.

He grinned at me and I lubed my cock, rubbed more at his hole, then pressed
to enter him and - as he pushed back against me his ass opened up and I
slipped in.


We both grunted - united, attached, sharing the pleasure and I just held
still... not wanting to interrupt what I was feeling.  He tensed his ass
muscles and I made my cock jump inside him as we smiled at each other.  He
nodded.  "Fuck me."  I pushed my cock into his prostate and could tell the
sensations were back for him.  "Oh yeah... right there.  Oh, please,
yes... oh, Marc... oh, fuck..."  I leaned into him and kissed him, but his
breathing was hard and shallow as he was obviously enjoying this feeling.
It was like I'd suddenly learned a new trick... a new position and a new
way to fuck.

"I love this," he whispered in my ear as I reached for his cock and started
rubbing the head with my thumb.  The precum made it slick and I looked in
his eyes and kept a steady pace... pulling out, then ramming in
hard... pulling almost all the way, then pushing into him in short bursts.
He smiled with his eyes, the corners turning up, but every time I would ram
him he would grunt and his eyes would roll back into his head.

I lost track of time and just enjoyed the feeling of his body under me and
around me.  Then he started pushing into me harder, so I picked-up my pace
- both in fucking and in jacking him - and I felt his ass contract.  "I'm
cumming baby," he said, and I got ready for the shots looking down to see
it happen.  The first shot landed between his pecs, almost hitting me in
the face - but, ohgod - he moaned this guttural, deep sound and I could
tell it was intense.  I looked up to see that his head was thrown back and
his eyes were closed.  He was clenching his ass so hard around my cock that
I felt my own orgasm building.

"Oh, fuck," I said filling the condom.  I didn't have extra warning.  I
could feel my cock expanding as I continued ramming his ass even harder.  I
lifted onto one arm and pounded into him, never losing a beat rolling his
cock around in my hand.  I pounded harder and harder, feeling like my
orgasm wasn't going to end, all the while listening to him grunt and moan
underneath me.  I didn't want to stop, so I leaned down into his mouth and
gently pulled in and out of his tight ass.  I pulled away from our kiss and
brought my hand to my mouth - licking his cum from my palm and letting the
sweetness roll down my tongue.  I had to slurp it from between my fingers
and he laughed.  "Fuck, that's hot," he said and I put my hand to his mouth
so he could lick my fingers.

We kissed again... deep, passionate, uniting... and I kept fucking him
gently until my cock got sensitive and I had to stop and roll off.  We both
lay there breathing and quiet for a few minutes, side by side - holding
hands.  I wasn't thinking about anything - just coming down from my high
and feeling the 'post cum fog' roll in.  My eyes were closed when he spoke.

"Marc?"


"Hmm?" I answered.  I pulled the condom off and looked at him.  Ryan's eyes
were closed and his breathing had almost returned to normal, but the sweat
from our activity was still coating his body and creating little swirls in
his chest hairs.

"I've never felt like this before," he continued.  "It's great, but (he
paused) - ohgod - I'm scared."  I took a breath to say something, but he
put his hand on my chest.  "I'm happy.  This is a good thing... you don't
have to say anything."  He rolled over and pressed his back against
me... my half-hard cock throbbing between his ass cheeks.

I kissed his shoulder and raked my clean fingers through his hair.  "I
won't hurt you," I whispered into his neck.

I knew that was the truth.  I wanted it to be the truth, but I suddenly
felt like I needed to be careful... and I knew I was in too deep to pull
back.  He turned to face me, snuggling his face into my armpit breathing in
my sweat.

"You're such a different person than when we first met," he said looking up
at me.

"What do you mean?"

"You were learning and everything was new for you - now, you know exactly
what you're doing."  He put his head back down.  "It scares me a little."

"What are you scared about?" I kissed his forehead and continued running my
fingers through his hair.

He didn't look up and spoke his hot breath into my pit.  "Because maybe
you'll find someone else and be done with me."

"I'm not like that."  I pulled back to look him in the eyes and lifted his
chin to look into his face.  "That won't happen.  I'm not even open to
that.  And if I start feeling weird or anything, I'll talk to you.  Ok?"

He nodded, but I could see fear behind his eyes.  Truthfully, I did feel
weird about it at times.  I wondered 'how' and 'when' I'd be able to
introduce him as 'my boyfriend.'  Those thoughts made my stomach roll, but
I smiled at him in spite of it.  His response was to push me onto my back
and to climb on top of me.  His kisses were gentle at first as he made
little circles around my ears and Adam's apple with his tongue.  By the
time his tongue reached my mouth, I was panting for him and our tongue
battle began again.  As we got rougher we were both throbbing and his cock
was again leaking precum onto my stomach.

"Round 2," I said, as I flipped him onto his back.

<><><><>

I was making geometric shapes on my notebook paper - doodling really - and
yawned.  The professor droned on about the current state of the economic
situation of the world and my mind was wandering.  Even though it was great
sleeping next to Ryan again, I didn't slept very well.  It didn't help that
I was bored with this lecture - and I was bored because I'd heard it all
before.

As far back as I can remember, there was always a copy of The Wall Street
Journal in our house and my father read it daily.  I started reading it,
too - at first, I just wanted to be like him and make him proud of me, but
the more I read the more I learned... and that's what led me to study
economics.

In the summer between high school and the start of college, I interned at
my dad's company.  So, while eating lunch in the break room one day two
VP's came in talking about a particular problem with the Euro.  I listened,
and when Dave, the Senior VP, looked my direction, I added my thoughts.  Of
course, much of what I knew came from reading an article the previous week,
but it was obvious he hadn't read the same article.  What started as an
hour-long lunch break turned into a two-hour discussion, and a call from
both VP's to my father.  Because of that incident, my father got me a
subscription to The Wall Street Journal when I moved away to college.  I
alway read the front page and headlines in the morning and research topics
that interest me or that I believe deserve more attention.  So, as I
listened to Professor Paumer, I realized he had taken most of this lecture
from the edition of the Wall Street Journal from several days ago.  And I
was
 bored.

Ten minutes before class ended, I got a text from Taylor.  "3:30. pita's on
fowler. bringing boyfriend. bring ur girlfriend"

I replied with "ok," packed my things and left the lecture hall with
everyone else, texting the meeting info to Ryan on my way out.

The rest of my classes that day seemed to be the same thing over and over.
I was so hyped to see Taylor, and nervous about introducing him to Ryan,
that the girl next to me in one class asked me to stop bouncing around so
much.

As 3:00 neared, I was hungry, so I made my way to my car to head to Pita's.
Traffic seemed heavier than normal and the rain clouds were already moving
closer to the campus.  It was only a matter of time before the afternoon
storms hit.

I turned into the Pita's parking lot in time to see Ryan walking in, so I
hurried to park and started walking quickly to the door.  I could see from
the parking lot that the place was empty, so this would give me a chance to
see him for a few minutes alone.  I opened the door with a smile on my face
and as he turned to the sound of the door opening, I knew it wasn't
Ryan... it was Taylor.

I froze and he started walking toward me, arms outstretched and grabbed me
into a big hug.  He had grown - was now taller than me, but still had the
lean frame of a swimmer.  I felt the emotion welling-up inside, but I
controlled myself.

"Holy fuck you look great," he said letting me go, but keeping one hand on
my shoulder.

"You too.  So, where's your boyfriend?"

Taylor motioned toward the back.  "He's in the bathroom.  Dude has the
smallest bladder of anyone I know!"  He laughed.  "And your girlfriend?"

I heard the door open behind me and turned to see if Ryan was walking in,
but it wasn't him.  The similarities between them were SO noticeable that
moment that I was shocked and still staring at Taylor.

"So, is your girl coming or what?" he asked.

"Well, I want it to be a surprise," I said as Taylor's boyfriend walked up.

"'Tank,' this is 'Marc'," Taylor said introducing us.  We shook hands, but
my eyes never left Taylor's face.  "Excuse me," Taylor said to Tank and
then lunged for me, embracing me in a big hug.  He immediately started
crying and so did I.

We stood there for a few minutes and talked, but the place was starting to
get busy, so we ordered and sat down.  Taylor's boyfriend, Tank, is one of
the fullbacks on the USF football team and talked about that a lot, but I
couldn't really concentrate.  I sent Ryan several texts, but he wasn't
answering.  After about 30 minutes passed, I told Taylor and Tank that I
was dating a guy... that's why I was waiting to talk about HIM, but that he
wasn't showing for some reason, and that obviously had me worried.

By 4:30 I decided that I needed to go see if Ryan was home sick or
something, so we said our 'good-byes' and said we'd keep in touch.  I
headed toward his house to check on him.

<><><><>

As I pulled into the subdivision I still hadn't heard from Ryan and it got
me worried. Turning onto his street, I noticed a car that I didn't
recognize parked in his driveway.  My heart-rate shot-up thinking back to
finding him with that other guy, but I pushed it out of my mind as I parked
behind the car (purposely), went to his front door and let myself in with
the key he'd given me.

The house alarm wasn't set and the house was quiet.  Too quiet.  Eerily
silent.

I went to his bedroom, but he wasn't in there.  In fact, it was tidy - bed
made, no receipts or coins on the dresser and the dirty clothes were either
washed or hidden in the hamper.  I went to the sliding glass doors to see
if he was out on the patio, but he wasn't there either.

I called his cell again, but it went straight to voicemail.  Now, I was a
little worried.

I decided to head back to my house, but left him a note at the foot of his
bed asking him to call me.

I didn't hear from Ryan that night.  Cam told me I shouldn't worry... that
he probably had some sort of friend or family issue to take care of, but it
didn't feel right to me.  When I didn't hear from him Tuesday mornig, I
drove back to his house after class.  The same car was parked in the
driveway - didn't look like it had moved - and all sorts of thoughts
started racing through my head.  None of the more nefarious scenarios made
sense, because someone else's car was parked in his driveway and his car
wasn't in the garage.  But he hadn't shown-up for the University Singers
this morning and Dr. Sumner hadn't heard from him.  This just wasn't like
Ryan and it really felt like something was wrong.

I hated to pull his parents into this, but I had to be honest with myself -
I hadn't known Ryan long enough to know if this was serious.  He seemed to
have a really good relationship with parents, so it made sense that they
might know where he was.  I pulled into the empty parking lot at 11:00 and,
since they didn't open for lunch until 11:30, the doors were locked.  I
knocked loudly and Ryan's mom, Nicole, opened the door for me and motioned
for me to come inside.

"Marc, it's so good to see you.  Is Ryan with you?"  She asked, looking
past me into the parking lot.

I took a deep breath.  "Actually, no.  I was wondering if you'd heard from
him."

I followed her into the restaurant and we stood at the hostess station.  "I
haven't heard from him in a couple of days," she said, "but I'll call him."
She pulled her cell phone from her pocket and dialed his number.  It
obviously went directly to voice mail and she left a brief message asking
him to call her when he got the message.  "When did you talk to him last?"
she asked me.

"I was at my parents' house in Orlando and drove back Sunday morning.  I
stayed at his place Sunday night - and he was at his house when I left for
the gym yesterday, but I haven't heard from him since."  She had a worried
look on her face.  "There's a car in his driveway, but his car isn't in the
garage."

She started walking toward the kitchen, so I followed her.  "What's the car
in the driveway look like?" She asked as we were walking.

"It's a black two-door Mazda," I said.  She didn't react.

"You can come with me," she said as she pushed the swinging doors open into
the kitchen.  "Charlie!  Charlie!" she went in - calling for Ryan's dad.

"Yeah?"  I heard his answer coming from somewhere in the back.  We followed
the voice and he met us as we were walking.  "What's wrong, 'Nic?'"

"Have you heard from Ryan?" she asked him.  "Marc hasn't seen him or talked
to him since yesterday morning?"  She directed that statement with a
half-question at me.  I nodded.

Charlie looked at me.  "You two have a fight or something?"

"No sir.  I saw him Sunday and everything was fine, but - excuse me for
being graphic - but I haven't actually seen him since I rolled-out of bed
next to him yesterday morning."

"Hon, Marc says Damien's car is in his driveway," Nicole said to Ryan's
dad.

"Who?" I asked.  I didn't know who Damien was, but it made me worry.

Ryan's dad sighed and his shoulders sagged.  "Damien is Ryan's ex," he
said.  "From a couple of years ago.  Damien wasn't happy about the
break-up, but I didn't think they were talking anymore."

"He's never mentioned that name to me," I said.  "Is he dangerous?"

Nicole looked worried and Charlie shrugged as he answered.  "I don't think
so.  Ryan never said he was afraid of him and he never said things got
physical."  He wiped his hands on his apron then pulled his cell phone from
his pocket.

"We've both tried to call him," Nicole said, reaching for her phone -
obviously looking for some sign that Ryan might have sent her a text within
the last minute.  That sort of thing is contagious and I got my phone from
my pocket, too... looking for a message or a missed call.  Nothing.
Charlie dialed Ryan's number then left him a message when he got his
voicemail.

"Marc has been to his house," Nicole said to his dad, then looked at me.
"Anything out of place?" she asked.

"No," I said.  "I was there again just before I came here.  It looks like
he hasn't even been back, but the bed is made and everything.  I spent the
night at my place and went to class this morning.  He wasn't at the
'Singers' this morning and our professor hasn't heard from him either."

They exchanged looks and Nicole looked at her watch which made me do the
same.

"Is there something you're not telling me?" I asked.

They were still looking at each other and started talking and exchanging
looks like I wasn't there with them.  "We open in a few minutes," she said
flatly.  He nodded and looked at me, then back to her.

"You want me to go or do you want to go?" he asked, still having a
'private' conversation.

"I'll call Elisa to come in, then I'll go," Nicole answered him then
stepped away to call Ryan's sister.

Charlie moved toward me, took my arm and led me away from Nicole.  "Damien
had a serious drug problem," he started.  "They quickly moved from a
relationship to something that was not healthy and Ryan was smart enough to
see it early on... but Damien didn't let go and it wasn't until he was in
rehab that they cut-off communication."  My heart started beating very fast
and the worry on his face wasn't helping.  "Marc, if I had to guess, I'd
say Damien needed Ryan's help and Ryan couldn't say 'no.'  But that's just
a guess, mind you.  I don't think Damien would hurt Ryan, but we know where
he lives... well, where he used to live, so Nicole is going to see if Ryan
is there.  Will you ride with her?"

Nicole joined us in time to hear him ask me to ride with her.

"Of course," I answered.

They hugged and she promised to call when she got to Damien's house.

"Did Charlie fill you in?" she asked as she pulled out of the parking lot.

I nodded.  "He told me about Damien's drug problem..." I answered.

She was gripping the steering wheel and it was making me more nervous.  Ten
minutes later, my phone started ringing just as Nicole said we were almost
to Damien's place.  It was Ryan.

"Ryan, where are you?" I answered.

"I'm ok and I'm sorry I've been out of touch.  Look, I'll be home in about
30 minutes and I'll explain it all then, alright?" he said.

"No.  It's not alright.  I've been worried like crazy, but - ok - I'll see
you back at your place."

"Ok," he sighed then paused.  "I'm sorry," he said and hung up.

<><><><>

Ryan was surprised that his mother was with me, but when we explained it to
him he said it made sense.  The story of where he'd been and what was
happening was far less interesting than I thought it would be.  Yes, he'd
taken Damien to a rehab place and because he (Ryan) couldn't verify any
information about Damien they (the rehab facility) wanted him to stay.  Yes
- of course he could have left - but it didn't feel like the right thing to
do.  Not only did his cell phone die, but when he was checking the battery
it fell in a bucket of water, so he bought a new battery immediately after
leaving the facility.

"And you didn't think to call me from a land line?"  I wasn't buying this
explanation.

"I don't actually have your number memorized," he said.  "It's always just
been the '1' key in my phone and I never dial it."

Nicole read him the riot act for not calling her, but Ryan didn't expect
she'd even know he was gone... and he didn't expect to be gone so long.

I listened and tried to be understanding, but - honestly - something didn't
seem right about his story.  I had more questions, but they could wait
until his mother left.

My car was still at the restaurant, so Nicole told us to stay for dinner
when we picked it up later.  Once she drove away and we were back inside, I
decided to hit him with my thoughts.

"I need you to really listen to what I'm going to say, ok?" I asked him.
He started to speak, but I cut him off with my hand in the air.  "Just give
me a minute."  He nodded.  "What you just did was incredibly disrespectful
to me - and if the shoe was on the other foot, you'd be REALLY upset.  But,
beyond that - the story doesn't even seem believable to me.  So, I'm going
to give you the chance to come clean with me if there's anything else I
need to know... because, if I find out you've lied to me what our
relationship will atrophy."

Ryan smirked when I said the word 'atrophy,' and that broke the tension.

"What?  It's the first word that popped into my head," I said shrugging and
smiling.

He came closer to me and put his hands on either side of my waist, holding
me, but keeping enough distance that he could talk.

"Marc, I'm truly sorry.  I have nothing to hide from you."  He reached into
his pocket and produced a receipt from Batteries Plus.  "Here's the receipt
for my phone battery... and a receipt for the $1,000 I paid the facility to
house Damien until they verify his insurance."

I took both pieces of paper from him and looked at them.  The receipt from
'Gentle Healing' was dated two days ago.  The receipt from Batteries Plus
was dated today.

"This is very elaborate if you're lying to me," I said with a half smile.

He took my hand and led me to the couch, pushing me to sit down while he
got on his knees and got between my legs.

"I'm sorry - again, I'm really sorry," he started.  He took a deep breath
and put his hand on my chest and, as he started rubbing with his thumb and
fingers, I felt my tension start to melt.  "I apologize, Marc.  I care
about you so much - I really do.  It seems too soon to say it, but it's
true.  I don't want what we have to 'atrophy,'" he finished, smirking.
"Someone I cared about needed me, but I let you down - and you're the only
one who really matters to me now.  I won't do that to you again."

He leaned into me and pushed me back against the couch as he put his head
on my chest.  I hugged him and as I wrapped my arms around him.  We stayed
like that until I felt him relax into me.

"Anything else you need to tell me," I asked gently, continuing to rub his
back.

He shook his head.  "No.  Damien isn't a part of my life - and won't be -
but he really needed help and...."  He shrugged and sat up.  "I couldn't
say no to him with him being like that.  Marc, he looked rougher than I've
ever seen anyone look."

"Do you have the keys to his car?"  I asked.  "Should we take it
somewhere?"

"I'll park it in the garage for now, but he gave me his mom's number.  She
lives in Sarasota, so maybe we can take it to her."

I looked at Ryan and searched inside myself.  I could let this go - sure -
but I wondered if there was more to this than he was telling me.

We had a few hours until dinner, but neither of us had eaten lunch so we
headed to the restaurant to get my car - and food.  Ryan's dad wasn't too
happy with him, either, but his mom continued to give him the cold
shoulder.  He finally called her over to our table and explained that
Damien wasn't back in his life... that this was a one-time thing.  I
shrugged when she looked at me, but I think we were both willing to give
Ryan our trust.

<><><><>


The rest of the week was a blur.  With school and practicing for the solo,
I felt like I was constantly running on empty and I knew it would catch-up
with me eventually.

On Thursday, I picked-up a long shift at Joe's and he followed me into the
locker room when I got there.

"What gives?" he asked.  "Where you been?"

It made me laugh when he said things like that because he was trying to
sound all New Yorker tough guy, but the expression on his face always gave
him away.

"Joe, my life is getting busy and I'm not going to need the money very
soon."

He scrunched his face at me.  "What money?  Why soon?  We never got to do a
wrestling show."  Joe was thinking of all the possibilities of me leaving
the team.

I started to explain what was happening in my life, but I promised Joe that
I'd still do a shift here-and-there and that I definitely wanted to wrestle
in a show.  That satisfied him enough that he slapped my bare ass and
walked back to his office.

I was just about to head to the urinal to piss when two other waiters
walked into the locker room.  Now, by this time, we've seen each other's
cocks and asses, but it doesn't make it any less hot... and it really
started to turn me on seeing a guy walk into the locker room with nothing
on but his tennis shoes - apron in hand.  I saw early on that it's typical
for the guys to run around without their aprons back of house.  We've just
gotten so used to it that it's not a big deal.  But today, for me, was
different and I knew it as soon as they walked in.

For one thing, one of the guys was Lance, the country boy I met on my first
night.  I'd seen him working a few times, but we'd always been working on
opposite sites of the club and that gave us no time for interaction.  The
other thing that happened was surprising to me.  As he walked up to me to
talk, I smelled him - his skin, his musk, his body - whatever it was, it
was fucking hot - and I almost lost my footing.  Literally, my right knee
buckled.  There's no way to describe a testosterone assault on your senses.
It just happens.  My hormones immediately reacted to his pheromones and my
dick started chubbing.

"You ok there, Marc?" Lance asked me.

I looked down at his cock, then back to his face.  "Yeah, I'm good.  Why?"

He smirked at me.  "You seem a little off-balance, is all," he said.  I put
my leg up on the bench to tie my shoe and he walked behind me to his
locker.

"Mygod, that's a nice ass," he said from behind me.  I turned my head and
he was staring right at me smiling, his cock getting harder by the second.
In the distance, I heard the shower start running, so I knew the guy he
walked in with was in the showers.

"You're not so bad yourself," I said.  I could feel my skin flush,
especially my face.

His eyes kept darting from my ass to my face as I finished tying my shoe
but kept my leg up on the bench.  "So, what's your deal?  You with
someone?" he asked.

"Yeah.  I am," I said, and I heard the almost apologetic way it came out.
"That's not a bad thing," I added.  "He's an awesome guy - my first guy
actually.  Do you know 'Ryan' who used to work here?"

He smiled.  "You're with Ryan?  Wow... you're both lucky.  He's a good
guy."

"Yeah, he is," I said.

Lance slipped his flip-flops on and closed his locker then took a step
toward me from his locker.

"Can I?" he asked motioning toward my ass.

I swallowed hard and nodded as I saw his hand reach out to touch my ass.
Lance gently touched the top of my ass and gripped the muscle there.  I
felt his finger move into the dimple at the bottom of my back, then he
caressed downward with an open hand - the large hand of a country boy.  As
he brought his hand down, his fingers brushed through my ass crack
one-by-one - all of them making contact with my hole.  It made me shiver.
I still had my leg on the bench and was turned to watch his face the whole
time.  He looked into my eyes and smiled as he kept his index finger on my
hole... lightly rubbing in small circles.  Gently.  Not pushing.  I was
just about to arch my back out when he spoke.

"Thanks," he said removing his hand.

"Yeah," I said, my voice cracking.

Lance headed for the showers and I pulled my apron over my head fighting to
make my cock go down before I went out into the club.  Now I needed to cum
in the worst way.

During a break that night I called Ryan and told him about Lance.  I felt
guilty and didn't want any of that stuff between us.  He was fine with it -
said he totally understood and that touching between the guys who work
there happened all the time.  I already made plans to stay the night at my
own place tonight, but he told me to be ready for a fun weekend early
Friday morning.  I hadn't told him, but I guess he found-out Saturday was
my birthday.

"How early is early?" I asked.

"I'll pick you up by 7:30.  Bring a bathing suit, some party clothes and
some hang-around clothes," he added.

"Ok - see you in the morning, hon," I said.

"G'night, babe."

<><><><>


Feel free to send your thoughts to bryson.kyle@yahoo.com.  Also, check-out
my other story, Yard Work, here:

http://www.nifty.org/nifty/gay/beginnings/yard-work/