Date: Thu, 9 Jan 2014 04:24:17 -0500
From: Chicos Todos <chicostodos@gmail.com>
Subject: Mechanics of the Heart chapter 6

Hi readers! Thanks for joining me in a story exploring the complexity of
gay relationships. Before getting to the action, I just wanna say one
thing:


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 © 2014 ChicosTodos. All rights reserved. No part of this story may be
reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means electronic or
mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information
storage and retrieval system without the written permission of the Author.

This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places and incidents are the
products of the author's imagination or are used fictitiously. Any
resemblance to actual persons living or dead, business establishments,
events, or locales is entirely coincidental.


If you are a minor, or if it is illegal for you to read material containing
sexual activity between male adults, please refrain from reading any
further.


-----


NOTE: this story is a sequel to "Roberto the Mechanic Stud", which can also
be found on Nifty under Gay / Adult Friends and Gay / Interracial.


-----
-----


Simon knocked twice on the hotel room door. He waited.


The door swung opened and he was greeted by Jae's grin. The smile he'd
fallen in love with.


"Simon!"


"Happy birthday," the musician said, as Jae pulled him into a bear hug. It
was another thing he'd fallen in love with.


Simon arrived at Jae's hotel birthday bash an hour later than he expected,
because he changed his outfit six times. Eschewing his typical polo and
khaki ensemble, the black singer finally put on a graphic tee and
distressed jeans; they looked casual but cost $100 each. Finishing his look
off with a gold-plated necklace, Simon also packed some accessories and a
different t-shirt in his messenger bag, just in case he changed his mind
during the party.


"Here, I hope you like this," Simon offered as they released themselves
from the hug. He presented a gift-wrapped, palm-sized box to Jae.


Delightful surprise lit up the jock's face. "What is it??" He asked,
tearing off the wrapping.


Behind the birthday boy, several of Jae's friends looked on in the open
doorway.


"I think it'll come in handy tonight," Simon replied cryptically.


Suddenly, a bright voice piped up through the doorway crowd. "What's
everyone looking at?"


It was Nicole. Her eyes met Simon's and she rushed forward. "SIMON!!"


Chuckling at her tipsy state, Simon said hi and hugged her.


"Gawd, Jae! Will ya let Simon into the party first??" Nicole asked
melodramatically.


Jae looked up at Simon as he bunched up the torn wrapping paper. He had a
beautifully printed box in his hand.


"Are these cards?"


"Yeah. The print is by this Russian painter." Simon smiled. "I figured
you'd want to play King's Cup tonight, so..."


The athletic Asian hugged him again, this time sneaking in a quick peck on
Simon's neck.


"Thanks, man. Come in!" he urged. "It's gonna be a boss night!!"


The birthday hotel party was already well under way. It was in a massive
executive suite, several times the size of Simon's own bachelor pad. There
was a TV room, a dining room, a full kitchen, two bedrooms each with a
bathroom, an additional powder room, and a balcony that looked out onto the
lake. Twentysomethings filled the suite, busy with drinking, chatting,
laughing, and checking each other out. EDM music blared from the expensive
home theatre system.


The black musician followed Jae, Nicole, and a couple of talking girls into
the kitchen. Half-full vodka bottles and multicoloured shot glasses
littered every surface.


"Drink this," Jae said to Simon as he put down his messenger bag on the
floor. The Korean jock had two full shooters in his hand.


"What is it?" Simon asked as Jae offered another one to Nicole. The actress
and drama teacher declined.


"Birthday sweets," the Korean answered with arched eyebrows. He poured one
for himself, then one for each of the girls.


Nicole's eyes focused on the TV room. "Come find me. We gotta catch up!"
she said to Simon as she walked away.


Simon nodded and saw that Jae was ready for his birthday toast. He clinked
his shot glass with Jae's and his girlfriends'.


"Happy birthday!"


They downed the liquor together. It immediately warmed Simon's insides as
it went down.


"Simon, this is Tiffany and Britney," the young jock introduced, smiling at
the cheerful girls by his side.


"Hi! How do you know Jae?" Tiffany asked.


"Through Nicole and the other roommates, Julio and Arthur. How about you?"


"We met him last week at this guy's house party, after the rugby game,"
Tiffany replied. "What was the guy's name?" she asked Britney, who shrugged
and poured herself another drink.


"Jae's so awesome," Tiffany continued, glancing at the Korean. He was
talking with a really hot white blond guy, who was a bit taller, with a
similarly athletic build. The fitted polo shirt he had on showed off his
arms and chest.


"Omigod, remember when his team lost strip poker and they had to strip
dance?" Britney blurted.


Simon was all ears.


"Oh, how can you ever forget that??" Tiffany shot back. "They were better
than Magic Mike!!"


Both girls guffawed. Simon wished he was there for that, but then again,
he'd already seen Jae in all his glory. And touched, and sucked, and
fucked.


They'd been hooking up for over two months now, usually once a week,
sometimes two. They were also getting closer as friends, catching open mic
nights, playing video games, and talking into the wee hours whenever they
saw each other, usually after they'd fucked each other's brains out.


Simon knew he was getting in really deep, maybe too deep. But he couldn't
stop himself whenever Jae texted or called. They had so much fun together
that Simon began to convince himself that the young jock must feel
something, too.


"Simon, can I ask you a question?" Britney asked.


"Sure."


"You're gay, right?"


Simon cleared his throat. "Yes," he answered.


"Do you think Jae's hot?" the girl asked unabashedly.


Simon chuckled, surprised yet again by Britney's forthrightness. Before he
replied, though, Jae's blond hottie friend bellowed an announcement.


"Everybody to the TV room for King's Cup!"


Jae flashed a wily smile at Simon, waving the playing cards in his hand.


For the most part, Simon was done with getting wasted and making a fool of
himself, but if Jae wanted to play a drinking game on his birthday, he
wasn't about to be a bad sport and turn it down.


With a crowd of thirty-odd people in the TV room, another deck of cards was
added so that everyone had at least two turns. By the start of the second
go-around, however, the party was well-oiled by the liquor. During each
mini-game, people started miscounting and blanking on rhymes in messy
laughter.


Inevitably, spillage occurred. When an errant elbow knocked over a beer
bottle on the table, Jae immediately swept the playing cards away from the
overflowing alcohol.


"Yo, Jermaine, watch your drink!" he exclaimed. "I just got these cards!!"


"Geez, chill, man..." he responded, picking up the bottle.


Jae looked at him and lifted up a card. "18th century Russian art. Please
appreciate."


It was one of the few events that Simon vividly recalled from the long
game; he got tipsy soon after the start and answered too slow or just plain
incorrectly, which only meant more drinks for him. The other highlight came
when Nicole pulled a queen from the deck, which signalled the game `Never
Have I Ever'.


Everyone put up three fingers. Nicole looked around the group and thought
about her proclamation. Then, she said,


"Never have I ever had sex with someone of the same gender."


Anyone who had done that lowered a finger. As Simon lowered a digit, he
watched Jae. The athletic Asian stayed still, looked around naturally, and
dropped a finger as inconspicuously as possible.


And then Simon saw the that blond hottie, Tyler, dropped a finger as well,
inciting an uproar of gasps and questions to both of them.


The game went on and Julio, a rich, intelligent, and sarcastic poly sci
masters student and one of Jae's roommates, eventually become the
unfortunate recipient of the King's Cup. At that point, the party was
beyond ready to head to the club a few blocks away.


In his drunken stupor, Simon walked arm-in-arm with Nicole during the short
but freezing jaunt. They were chatting, but they were so incoherent that
they might as well have been speaking two different languages to each
other. Every once in a while, the black musician looked for Jae in the
giddy travelling pack. The birthday boy had his arm around a different
friend every time, emphatically blurting out something, laughing, or
raising his fist in song.


As the party crew neared their late-night hotspot, they toned down their
bravado and composed themselves for the ID and security check. Simon saw
that they bypassed the winding queue leading to the club's
entrance. Walking in after the bouncer frisked him, he followed Nicole to
coat check, then up a few flights of dimly-lit stairs, until he emerged at
the balcony level looking down on the crowded dance floor.


He gathered from the sectioned-off area, posh-looking booths and ice
buckets filled with vodka bottles that they were in the VIP. As the rest of
the party excitedly filled the room, Simon couldn't help but wonder how
much money tonight had cost, from the executive suite to bottle service. He
figured Jae must have blown his entire paycheque on this one night.


"You like it?"


The black singer turned around. It was Jae, already sipping from a glass.


"Yeah..." Simon nodded. "Impressed. I'm impressed," he followed. Leaning
over the railing, Simon felt his body bob and sway a bit.


"Good. I want everyone to have the best time tonight!"


The singer looked around the club. Rows of colourful LED lights lit up the
walls, transforming into moving arrows, falling snowflakes, concentric
circles, and cascading waves. The hi-contrast effect was alternately
dazzling and dizzying. Meanwhile, on the bar counter, two female go-go
dancers rolled and writhed their bodies to the beat, moving sensually in
stiletto heels on the narrow serving ledge.


Jae wrapped his arm around the musician's shoulders. Feeling warm and loose
from the liquor, Simon had to restrain himself from planting a kiss on
Jae's flushed face.


Simon hoped they would have some alone time later.


"How old are you turning?" the black singer asked.


"24. I'm in my mid-twenties now!" Jae exclaimed. They both had a chuckle,
well aware that Simon was seven years older.


"Let's see..." Simon pondered. "What was I doing at 24? I was...I was
probably recording one of my many unreleased albums," he sighed, shaking
his head with a grin.


Jae was silent for a moment. When Simon turned to look at him, the athletic
Asian had a serious look.


"Y'know, I checked out your stuff on Youtube." He patted Simon's
shoulder. "You're really good, man."


The musician was shocked. "What?? You looked at my old videos?"


"Yeah. Remember? We talked about them last time."


"Yeah, I remember, I just didn't expect...did you watch all of them?" The
singer recalled his poor judgments in wardrobe and choreography over the
years. "Wait, which one did you watch?"


"I watched all of them, man!!" Jae proclaimed. "You're legit,
seriously. You can sing, you can dance...you're gonna make it one day."


At this, Simon shook his head, partly due to humility, partly due to
defeat. "Nah, I had my chance. I..."


He exhaled. "Maybe the timing was off. Or maybe I just wasn't good enough."


"Don't give up," Jae said, looking at Simon straight in his eyes. He
tightened his hold around the musician's shoulders.


Simon was speechless. Before he could utter a word, however, the birthday
boy was mobbed by Tiffany, Britney, and two other girls. They pulled him
away and dragged him towards the stairs in fits of laughter.


Simon watched them head down the stairs, presumably to the dance
floor. Then he went over to one of the booths, where Nicole and her
roommate Arthur were drinking.


"There goes the floozies with their prize," Nicole sneered, rolling her
eyes.


"Judgey, much?" Arthur teased. He handed Simon a full glass.


"Actually, I'm basing my judgment on fact. They have a birthday surprise
planned for Jae," Nicole said with a wry grin.


"Like a cake? Or song and dance?" Arthur quizzed. "Or song and dance with
cake?" He was excited by the prospect of cake.


Nicole shook her head, head held high as if she alone had valuable
exclusive information. Simon looked at her and waited a bit.


"What's your guess?" she asked with a smug wink.


Simon rolled his eyes. "I have no idea. What is it?"


The drama teacher and actress looked around conspiratorially, verifying
that no one was within earshot. Then, she leaned in and spoke in a low
tone.


"A lil' private session back at the hotel."


She waited for the guys' reactions with a side glance.


Simon didn't get it. "What do you mean?"


"Simon!" Her eyes were wide with disappointment.


"They're gettin' down, aren't they?" Arthur asked. He spotted Jae with the
girls on the dance floor downstairs, and pointed them out to Nicole and
Simon.


She nodded.


Simon's eyes bugged out as he stared at the females grinding up on the
birthday boy, who had his beefy arms raised up in victory.


"Lucky man," Arthur quipped. His eyes squinted at the girls, looking them
up and down. "Actually..." he corrected with a grimace.


Meanwhile, Simon couldn't hold back his surprise and disappointment. He
downed his drink in one big gulp and blurted, "But they just met last
week!!"


Nicole squealed and began laughing.


"Seriously, Nicole?!" the singer pressed on, staring hard at the howling
drama teacher, anxious for an answer.


Meanwhile, Arthur watched curiously, his observational instincts as a
journalist kicking in.


"SIMON! Omigod...oh dear..." she sighed in a sympathetic tone, wiping a
tear from her eye. "Are you jealous? Just a little bit?" she taunted.


Her stare was pointed as the singer stammered. "WHAT?? No no no..." He
frowned as hard as he could. "Why would I be jealous??"


Arthur's head tilted. "I'm missing something here." He had a pretty strong
hunch about what was going on, but it was always more entertaining to wait
for his subject to come clean by themselves.


It wasn't going to happen this time, though. "Arthur, girl talk," Nicole
said, waving him away. The journalist mocked her haughty gesture and headed
downstairs.


When they were alone in the booth, the actress began. "Honey, I think
you're in trouble..."


But Simon wasn't having any of it. He stood up, waving his hands and
shaking his head dismissively, and headed downstairs.


Nicole thought about calling him back. But then she shrugged and poured
herself another drink.


Once on the dance floor, Simon pushed forward through the crowd until he
saw the object of his affection. He was busy groping and making out with
Britney.


The black singer stood still, watching and comparing the gut-wrenching
spectacle to the kisses he'd been sharing with Jae lately. He looked away
when it hurt too much.


Simon was compelled to go up to the Korean jock, tear Britney off him, and
show him who knew how to pleasure him best. But then anger swung back to
heartache again, when Simon realized he had already shown Jae everything he
had, given all of his passion in every kiss, all of his desperate need in
every blowjob, all of his love in every post-coital embrace...


All of his love.


He was staring at the man he had fallen in love with, the man who was now
kissing someone else. A girl.


It hit him cold and hard: he was repeating the same mistake. Once again,
he'd wasted his time and given his heart to someone who didn't ask for it,
someone whose own heart wasn't up for grabs.


The gigantic speakers around him played the top hits of the year, eliciting
wild cheers whenever the DJ mixed into the next radio smash. At that
moment, when Simon thought about leaving the dance floor to drown his
sorrows, or even to silently ditch the party, the DJ played Zedd's
"Clarity".


Simon looked up at the elevated DJ booth and laughed hollowly. As Foxes
began singing the first verse, the lyrics about an intense tug-of-war love
affair filled the entire club, coming to life as a booming soundtrack to
Simon's tortured emotional state.


He thought about the night of the Big Fair fireworks. He could clearly
recall the exploding colours across the night sky, clearly feel the sheer
euphoria of being with Jae. Now, on a jammed dance floor where drunken
partygoers bumped into him and hollered off-key to the skyscraping chorus,
he was also looking up at flashing colours. But the phalanx of LED lights
that performed manifold sequences on the walls only confused him, spun his
head around until any remaining shard of logic that he had were shattered
on the liquor-stained tiles.


Simon lost his balance and fell backwards. It happened in a split-second,
yet it felt like it was unfolding in slow motion. When he landed, a sharp
pain stabbed the back of his head. His eyes lost focus for an instant;
after blinking a few times, he saw a circle of people staring down at him.


Nicole and Arthur swooped down and lifted him up.


"Simon! Look at me!"


"Are you okay??"

"Simon!" Nicole's insistent slaps annoyed him, so he glared at her.


"I'm okay, I'm okay..."


A security guard come up and asked what was going on. Simon tried to brush
it off nonchalantly, saying he just lost his balance and fell. The
stern-looking lady gave him a once-over, then told him to follow her.


Simon groaned, thinking he was getting kicked out. She led him down a
corridor past the washrooms, then through a `Security Only" door.


Once inside the security office, she said, "Sit down in there," pointing to
a brightly lit side room.


When Simon walked in, he saw three other people in the room, each on small
beds. One of them was clearly tripping, staring at the ceiling with glassy
eyes. Another was passed out, looking pale. The third person, a young man,
was talking to himself.


"Hey, look. Three makes company and four makes a party."


Simon felt dirty and disgusted as he sat down in a vacant chair. He looked
down on the floor, avoiding eye contact.


"Yo what's your name?"


The musician closed his eyes and sighed.


Happy holidays indeed! Christmas wasn't too far away, and here he was in
some kind of detox room, and he didn't even do any drugs.


"Yo, I'm looking for Kevin. Have you seen him? He's a tall black dude,
with..."


The young man would not shut up, but Simon was too much inside his head to
register what he was saying.


He retraced his steps. How did he end up here? He drank too much. Why did
he drink too much?


Jae.


The fall was sobering him up, and he felt ready to dive into the emotional
mess he floundered in, so he took a deep breath and interrogated himself.


What was the problem here? Jae was making out with Britney. Why was he
upset by that? Because he didn't want Jae making out with anyone
else. Because he was in love with Jae, and obviously Jae wasn't in love
with him.


But it wasn't like Jae was cheating; they were fuck buddies. Simon stumbled
into this ill-defined relationship with wishful thinking, hoping lust would
turn into love, and casual fun would turn into monogamous commitment. It
didn't happen, so Jae didn't really do anything wrong by making out with
Britney.


Simon leaned back into the hard plastic chair. He thought about drawing
clear boundaries with the young jock. Clearly, being fuck buddies wasn't
working out for him.


`Maybe we can be just friends; maybe I can manage that,' he thought. `It
would be hard, but it would be worth a try.'


He did want Jae to continue to be in his life, even without the sex. He was
an optimistic, happy-go-lucky kind of guy who lifted Simon's spirits
whenever they hung out. And he had just encouraged Simon to not give up on
his musical dreams. The singer believed that Jae would remain a positive
influence in his life.


...but, every time he laid eyes on the Korean hunk, he just wanted to tear
his clothes off.


Simon blinked. He got up and went to the security guard outside the detox
room.


"Can I go now?" he asked, tired and over it.


She gave him another scrutinizing once-over. "You can leave. Coat check is
through that door," she replied, pointing to a door behind Simon.


"Thanks."


When the musician stepped out of the club, alone, it was snowing
densely. He saw the nearest bus stop and started walking towards it, then
stopped when he realized he didn't have his monthly pass on him.


"Shit, my bag..."


He left his messenger bag in Jae's hotel room. He'd left it there in the
mass drunken hurry to head to the club a few hours ago. Simon really didn't
want to see or talk to Jae right now, but he had no choice.


He sent the birthday boy a text and waited for a reply in the bus
shelter. When he didn't get a text back half an hour later, he called Jae.


The Korean didn't pick up. Meanwhile, the December snow showed no signs of
stopping. Simon decided it was worth a shot to go back to the hotel; maybe
Jae or someone else was there.


On the way, Nicole texted him asking where he was. After explaining his
return to the hotel to her, she invited him to join her at a 24-hour pita
shop close by. Simon replied, "Sure," but all he wanted to do was go back
home and sleep.


Minutes later, he made it back to the five-star complex and took the
elevator up to the executive suite. When he got to the door, there was a
"Do Not Disturb" sign hanging on the doorknob.


Simon swallowed and grimaced. He knocked on the hotel room door, waited,
and knocked again.


"Who is it?" someone yelled, his voice muted by the closed door.


"It's Simon. I left my bag," he shouted back. "I just need to get it."


"Just you?"


"Yeah," Simon replied.


The door opened a minute after. Standing in front of him was Jae, wearing
only his colourful boxer shorts. His face was ruddy and smiling. It was a
déjà vu moment from the beginning of the night, only drunker and
more nude.


Simon looked away from the young Asian hunk as he hurriedly walked
in. "Sorry...I just gotta get my bag."


Jae didn't say anything, just watched with a grin as the black singer
thought for a moment, then went into the kitchen.


Simon found his messenger bag on the floor by the kitchen table. As he
slung it over his shoulder, a voice called out to him.


"Hey, Simon."


It wasn't Jae's voice. Simon turned around.


He saw Tyler, naked, standing in the kitchen with a cocky smirk, his hands
on his hips.


"Jae and I were just getting started. You wanna..." He jerked his fat
cock. "You wanna join us?"


The tall blond man was as physically attractive as Simon had imagined he
would be: all strapping muscle, lightly dusted with curly blond hair from
his chest, his abs, his pubes, down to his toned thighs and calves.


Simon's breath was caught in his throat. Then Jae appeared behind Tyler,
also naked.


"Dude, slow down," he scoffed, slapping his blond buddy's ass. "Simon
doesn't like it like that."


The Korean jock walked up to Simon, who was petrified. Standing
face-to-face, Jae leaned down and gave the musician a passionate kiss.


`Maybe this is just a dream,' Simon thought to himself. `Or...or maybe
someone slipped something into my drink...'


Soon Tyler came near and sucked on Jae's neck from behind. With a moan, the
Asian hunk turned back and made out with the blond.


Simon wasn't turned on by the sight of the two studs kissing and groping
each other right in front of him. Rather, he was confounded. He thought
back to how he got his drink in the club.


`Arthur?? But why would Arthur want to drug me??'


"We're leaving Simon out," Jae said, breaking his kiss with Tyler. He
looked at the short, slender black man and gestured for him to come closer.


Simon stood rigid, unable to process what was happening.


"C'mon, Simon," Tyler beckoned. "I heard you were amazing in bed," he
added, as he reached around and felt the singer's buttocks through his
jeans.


The musician snapped. He shot a sharp glance at Jae. He felt betrayed.


"What's wrong?" Jae asked, taken off guard. He took Simon's hands, brought
them down to his semi-hard shaft, then moved in for another kiss. That was
when the musician broke free of the trance he was in.


"I gotta go," he muttered, shoving past the two hard bodies.


Jae was jolted out of his easy, inebriated state. "Wait, Simon..." he
urged, grabbing the musician's arm.


"DON'T TOUCH ME!!" Simon screamed, turning around. He gave Jae a ringing
slap across the face.


The Asian jock was stunned. Simon gave him one last look, then sped out of
the hotel room.


"What the..." Tyler began, looking at Jae, then the front door.


The young Korean felt his cheek. It stung.


Tyler exhaled. "Sorry, man. I don't know what..."


"It's cool, just..." Jae mumbled. "...I think I need to call it a night."
He headed to the bedroom.


Shock began to turn into remorse. He soon noticed that Tyler was following
him.


"Dude, seriously," Jae groaned, turning around.


"Look, I know what just happened really sucked, but..."


Jae shot him a glance, as if asking him if he was serious.


"All right, all right," Tyler conceded, disappointed. He picked up his
clothes and left the room.


The tall, striking blond couldn't believe it; he was shot down twice in one
night. He'd never ever met a gay guy who turned him down. `What a bust,' he
thought, a night of promised debauchery flatlining into a massive fail.


When Jae heard Tyler finally leave with the click of the front door, the
young Korean jock let out a breath of relief. He stripped off his boxer
shorts and got ready to climb into bed, but then thought about the wicked
hangover awaiting him the next day. So he went to the kitchen to get some
water.


As he took big gulps from a plastic cup, he felt like a douche. If that
slap didn't fully articulate how angry Simon was, the final withering stare
left no doubt as to how badly Jae had fucked things up.


He hadn't planned on it. He was already busy trading sloppy blowjobs with
Tyler when Simon knocked on the door. The blond froze, fearing that he
would be discovered. When they realized it was Simon at the door, however,
Tyler's fear quickly turned to curiosity. Jae had told his buddy from
school how great Simon was at giving head and talking dirty, so in the spur
of the moment, the blond suggested an impromptu threesome to Jae. Jae then
genuinely thought that Simon would've liked to have some fun with Tyler.


The Korean had met the blond last year in one of his classes, and they
mostly talked about readings, sports, and girls at first. Then, at a
kegger, Tyler drunkenly revealed that he was `mostly straight': he'd had
sex with gay guys, meeting them discreetly through mobile apps. In turn,
Jae told him of an alcohol-fuelled gay hookup he had back out West, where
he was from. It was just one time, oral only, and afterwards he'd never
done anything gay again, until he met Simon.


Jae and Tyler found each other attractive, but they never had sex together
prior to the birthday party. Tyler was mainly interested in hooking up with
gay guys, while Jae had been fine with being celibate in the new city,
after leaving behind a messy breakup with a girl back out West. Then, he
met and got to know Simon, and when the singer wrapped his talented tongue
and lips around his cock, his libido was reignited.


As a birthday present for Jae, Tyler had suggested a long-overdue sex
session. After having sock-rocking gay intercourse with Simon for weeks,
the young Asian realized he enjoyed doing it with a guy as much as with a
girl. So he took Tyler's offer, excited to explore an attractive new body.


The Korean honestly thought that Simon would be excited to have sex with a
guy as hot as Tyler. He didn't expect the anger and the look of betrayal
from the musician.


Although the liquor in his system made him increasingly drowsy as he
crawled naked into bed, he pulled out his phone and gave Simon a call
before he passed out. Feeling guiltier by the second, Jae wasn't quite sure
what he was going to say, apart from apologizing.


The musician didn't pick up. Four rings ended in Simon's voicemail
message. Jae closed his eyes and started speaking.


"Simon, it's Jae. So, listen, I'm really sorry about what happened. I
thought...as stupid as it sounds, I thought it was a good idea. `cos
Tyler's an attractive guy and..."


`Stop rambling,' Jae thought.


"...I guess I thought you would like to have some fun with him. Anyway,
Simon, can you please give me a call back? I really want to talk this out
with you. I'm really sorry."


Simon was in a cab when he got the voicemail notification. He was full-out
bawling. He didn't care that the taxi driver was staring at him through the
rearview mirror, probably judging his sad state.


For some reason, the singer couldn't get past the fact that Jae was having
sex with another guy. He sincerely thought it would've been better if he
saw Britney in bed with him instead of Tyler. Why was that?


Because Simon had thought that he was the only guy who Jae had sex
with. He'd thought he was the only guy who Jae wanted to have sex with. The
only guy who Jae was attracted to.


He'd thought that they shared something special.


-----


"Just three more reps."


Danny's arms were on fire. He wanted to stop and drop the weights in his
hands.


"Two..." Roberto counted.


"Argh!"


"One more, c'mon!"


Danny rowed the last rep and dropped the barbells on the padded floor of
the weight room. His arms were shot, but he was relieved that he would no
longer feel judged on his form and number of reps. He was sure everyone
else in the room thought that he was a wimp.


"Good job. Jump rope to finish?" Roberto suggested, grabbing two ropes.


"Sure..." Danny muttered, hiding his frown.


While his mechanic boyfriend could skip up to five minutes straight, no
problem, Danny maxed out panting at one minute. The rest of the four
minutes were used to catch his breath and feel sorry for himself.


He looked around at the other people working out in the weight room. He saw
the same thing in the machine room, the yoga room, by the row of
elipiticals, and in the changeroom: better looking, fitter people who knew
what they were doing.


Since he started going to the gym with Roberto two months ago, Danny began
to constantly wonder how Roberto was attracted to him. His man knew lots of
people in the fitness centre, many of whom were clearly attracted to
him. These guys and girls almost all had less body fat and more muscle than
Danny. In his mind, he just didn't compare.


The copywriter looked at himself in the locker room mirror and
sighed. Though Roberto had just complimented earlier that he could see more
definition on Danny's body, the brunet knew that his frame wouldn't pack on
a lot of muscle unless he drastically changed his diet and weight training
routine. He wasn't sure if he had the drive or the discipline to do that.


As he followed Roberto into the showers, he saw Greg, one of the guys who
blatantly checked out his man at every chance. A young Taiwanese guy, this
fawning acquaintance was of similar build to Danny two months ago; now,
Danny saw the bigger arms, shoulders and chest that Greg gratuitously
flaunted as he said hi to Roberto. Danny bitterly wondered why he hadn't
seen similar gains himself.


Last week, when he hung out with Richie and Simon, his best friend shook
his head as Danny laid out the misery he felt every time he went to the gym
with Roberto.


"Then stop going to the gym. You said Roberto had lots of gear at home, so
work out at home," Richie said.


"Yeah, but I feel like we should spend as much of our free time together as
possible. And it's a big part of his life, so I wanna be part of it."


"Then ask Roberto to work out at home with you."


Danny shook his head. "No no, that wouldn't work. He only has one of each
equipment. Plus, I think he really likes going to the gym. I don't wanna be
the one to stop him."


"Just talk to him. Tell him what you're telling us now," Simon suggested.


The copywriter sighed and pushed away the cheesecake he took one bite
of. "No, it's okay. I just gotta get over it."


Back in the gym, Danny looked at Roberto getting dressed in the
changeroom. He got the man of his dreams...but did he deserve him?


"Ready?" the mechanic asked him.


"Um hmm," he nodded, grabbing his gym bag.


The mechanic gave him a quick peck on the lips.


It was around eight in the morning when they left the fitness centre;
Roberto was going to drop Danny off at his office, then go to the
garage. It was a Friday, so traffic was lighter than during the rest of the
week.


"Oh, baby, did I tell you I'm staying late at the shop tonight?" Roberto
asked.


"Oh yeah? How late?"  The mechanic thought for a moment. "Well, I got a
business meeting with Fred, so it's hard to say."


"Is everything okay?"


"Yeah, of course. We're looking at expanding...we've been talking about
it."


"Okay," Danny replied. "I'll get something from the supermarket for
dinner."


They turned into the office parking lot. "Sure. Don't wait up for me
though."


Danny looked at Roberto. "You're gonna be that late?"


His boyfriend sighed. "I dunno...there's a lot to go over. I'll try."


"Okay."


They stopped in front of the office entrance. Roberto leaned in for a kiss.


"Love you, baby," he whispered.


Danny swallowed, smiled weakly, and got out of the red Lancer.


He waved goodbye to Roberto as the sports sedan rounded the corner and sped
off. Then he waited a few minutes more by the front door.


When he was sure that his boyfriend had driven far enough away, he started
walking away from the building, and towards the bus stop one block away.


Roberto didn't know that Danny had called in sick this morning in the
bathroom. Roberto also didn't know that Danny planned on spending most of
the day wandering around the luxury shopping mall uptown, until it was
dinnertime.


It wasn't the first time Danny felt the need to disappear on his own
without warning. Once a week, Danny would go to the mall, the hipster
strip, or a coffee shop after work. He would wander around and sit for an
hour, then come home late, unannounced. Roberto would ask him what
happened, and he would lie about working late. Today was the first time he
actually called in sick to spend some time by himself. The stress was
worsening.


Wasn't he supposed to be happy? He had every right to be. He had a good
job, and a drop-dead gorgeous stud of a boyfriend who loved him. Sure, his
relationship with his mother was on the rocks, but nobody had it
all. Besides, his turmoil didn't have anything to do with his mom this
time.


`So what am I doing?' he asked himself on the bus.


He began running off impulsively after work when he'd started going to the
gym with Roberto. He hated it; he hated how weak and ugly the gym made him
feel. But he pushed himself to go because he wanted to be in every facet of
Roberto's life. It was how he envisioned the perfect relationship to be,
yet in reality, it was making him miserable. Worse, he began to feel guilty
about feeling miserable. He kept telling himself to `be a man' and to `get
over it', but that didn't help.


He'd also been walking on eggshells since Roberto blew up at him for moving
his stuff. Danny was never one for confrontation, and that episode with the
magazines and the workout gear scarred him; he never wanted Roberto to
raise his voice at him ever again. He didn't want any fighting between
Roberto and him to ever occur, and if it meant censoring himself and
presenting only the side that Roberto liked, then he would do it.


He would do it, however, with the caveat of spontaneous time-outs after
work whenever he needed to be fully himself. However, guilt caught up with
him every time he was alone and supposedly at peace: he felt awful about
repeatedly lying to Roberto.


The shopping centre was filled with Christmas shoppers rushing to complete
their lists. The clothing stores Danny usually browsed in were all filled
with snaking queues, so he avoided them and went to the bubble tea shop.


In the back of his mind, the ugly beast awakening underneath all of this
was that Danny began to doubt whether he was good enough for Roberto. It
was initiated by the gym visits, then it spread into a full-blown
complex. It went beyond his belief that the mechanic was way too hot to be
with someone like himself. He thought he was too immature, too emotional,
too inexperienced for Roberto. He barely knew how to cook; he didn't feel
like he could provide and take care of his man. He didn't feel like
Roberto's equal.


If he was being utterly, brutally honest with himself, his sneaking off was
a form of self-sabotage, a corrosive compulsion that was beginning to
damage their relationship.


-----


Yet there was plenty that Danny didn't know about Roberto either. He didn't
know that, like him, Roberto also wasn't going to work.


Instead, after dropping off his boyfriend, he got on the highway and headed
west. He was going to a racetrack two hours away, where an all-day drag
racing event was taking place. He'd been invited by Nadia.


They'd been emailing since after they ran into each other at the sports
bar; Nadia had been in town to recruit new racers from the street to
compete at the racetrack, where she was Vice President of Racing
Events. Roberto waited a week after that unplanned meeting before pulling
out Nadia's business card and sending her a message. Then, it took about a
month before his former mentor convinced him to come out to the track,
"just to watch".


He hadn't told Danny about any of this, nor the fact that his first visit
to the racetrack happened during the weekend of the Big Fair. Part of the
reason for the secrecy was Danny's hysterical reaction when he first met
Nadia and thought she was taking Roberto away. The mechanic and former
motorcycle racer didn't want to deal with the dramatic episode and the
long-winded explanation if he told Danny, at least not yet.


The other reason, the one that scared and thrilled Roberto in equal
measure, was because he began itching to race again. It happened as soon as
he stood right by the track with Nadia and watched the motorcycles rev up,
shoot forward, and clear the quarter-mile with a snarly whine. He instantly
felt the urge to zip up in the leather suit he'd stowed away in the
basement and climb on a bike.


Of course, circumstances were much different now than they were during his
student street racing heyday. He had a garage to run, and he'd already
gotten into a fight with Fred over his secret foray back into racing.


It happened just the day before his second visit, as Fred was leaving
work. "I'll see you Saturday," the office manager said, ready to walk out
the door.


"Hey buddy," Roberto called out, awkwardly scratching the back of his head.


"Yeah?"


"Uhh...can I ask you a favour?"


"What?" Fred questioned. And then he knew what it would be. Roberto's eyes
shifted guiltily.


"No," the office manager said.


"Fred, hear me out..."


"Did you tell Danny where you were that weekend?" Fred demanded, staring at
the head technician.


Roberto exhaled and shook his head. "I will, after tomorrow. I just...I
really need you to cover for me one last time. He might not even call
you. But if he does..."


"I'm not gonna lie for you again!" Fred said, exasperated. "Did you know I
was THIS close to telling Danny last time at the baseball game? I bit my
tongue because he looked like he was about to cry."


Fred wasn't leaving anymore; he had some things to get off his
chest. "What's going on between you two?"


"Nothing. Everything's fine."


"Not if you keep this up," the office manager retorted, walking up to his
best friend and business partner.


"Look, I've got this under control. I'll tell him everything. But right
now, Fred, please, just one last time..."


"I'm not gonna do it!" Fred exclaimed. "Rob, you're not listening to me!
You need to tell Danny everything, NOW."


He put his hands on Roberto's shoulders. "Trust me; he WILL find out, and
then it'll only get worse."


Roberto shook off Fred's hands. "And when are YOU gonna tell Jen about the
Lamborghini fund?" he challenged.


His best friend was thrown off for a second, but he soon steered back the
conversation. "This isn't about me and Jen. Rob, I'm trying to help you. If
you can just listen..."


Roberto had enough. "Y'know what? Fuck it," he said, walking away from
Fred. "Go home. Forget I said anything."


"Hey, I'm not finished!" Fred grabbed the mechanic's shoulder and spun him
around.


"Forget it!" Roberto repeated, shrugging Fred off.


"I'm not gonna drop this because I care, Rob!"


The head technician stopped.


"I care about you, and Danny. I like him a lot." Fred took a breath. "He's
the best thing that's ever happened to you."


That made Roberto turn around.


"I don't know why you feel like you have to lie to him about this..." he
sighed. "I just know that, as your longest and best friend, I'm gonna be
real with you."


He paused, then warned, "Don't fuck this up. Trust me, lying never ends
well."


So Fred refused to cover for Roberto. That didn't stop the mechanic stud
from going to the racetrack on his day off. He was disappointed that Fred
didn't understand where he was coming from.


Things were changing in his relationship with Danny. For the first time,
Danny began to reject Roberto's advances in bed, saying he was "too tired"
or "too sore from the workout". The mechanic didn't know the real reason
for the rejection, so he thought that Danny's passion for him was
dwindling. This worried him immensely.


Just as worrying and disappointing were the brunet's impromptu disappearing
acts. He believed Danny the first few times he said he was working late,
but when Roberto asked him why he didn't pick up his phone or at least
update him via text, Danny's vague answers and darting eyes told the
mechanic that his boyfriend was lying. Sometimes, with the slim, smooth
young man naked and asleep beside him in bed, he would lose sleep obsessing
over all the possible reasons Danny had for lying, all the horrible things
he must've been up to that justified the lying in Danny's head. He would
feel his heart breaking, and he would ask himself again and again if it was
all worth it.


With all that relationship stress weighing him down, racing came back into
Roberto's life at the perfect time as much-needed escapism. It made him
realize that he longed for a jolt of excitement in his increasingly stable
and settled life. He loved Danny, but he was also nostalgic for his
younger, single, freer days, when it was more about enjoying the moment and
less about the worries that seemed to have multiplied with age. Since he
had no intention of cheating on his boyfriend, he decided that racing would
be his way of adding spark back into his life. Just being there, at the
racetrack, around the bikes and the racers made him feel young, exciting,
and invincible again.


When Roberto arrived at the racetrack later that day, he saw four-wheeled
hot rods on the track. The motorcycle races were still to come; he was glad
he hadn't missed them.


Friday was the first qualifying session of three, before the fastest 16
racers compete for the trophy and cash prize on Sunday. Since it wasn't the
finals, the general public was largely absent from the spectator stands.
Those who were present were diehard racing fans and the inner circle of the
industry.


Like his first visit two months ago, Nadia told Roberto to meet her in the
VIP box. When he got there this time, he saw a grey-haired man in a black
suit beside Nadia.


"You got here early," Nadia greeted with a hug.


"Yeah, less traffic on Fridays."


"I bet you sped all the way here so you wouldn't miss a single bike
qualifier," Roberto's racing mentor quipped.


"Hello Roberto. Do you remember me?" the man with the distinguished air
asked in a European accent. He offered a polite handshake.


"Hey Olivier," Roberto replied, reciprocating the handshake. He was the
Swiss banker who Nadia connected with, right before everything turned
sour. "Long time no see."


"I don't think I've told you yet..." Nadia began with a slight smile.
"Olivier is my husband. We've been married for six years now."


"Time flies when life is good," Olivier continued, smiling sweetly at his
wife.


"Well, congratulations," Robert offered. "Better late than never, hehe..."


"Thank you,"


Olivier stepped forward and wrapped his arm around the former racer's
shoulders. "Roberto, I remember you were quite the rider."


"Well, Nadia was quite the teacher," Roberto replied.


"Why did you stop racing, my friend? You had such a promising career ahead
of you. You could've had the sponsorships, the secondary business
ventures..."


Nadia gave Olivier a side glance, which promptly shut him up.


"He's got his own garage now," she said. "And a beautiful boyfriend."


"Well, well, now I think I understand!!" Oliver exclaimed. "What's his
name?" the Swiss banker asked with a big grin.


"Danny."


"I would like to meet Danny, the man who captured this superb rider's
heart, haha!" Olivier declared, patting Roberto's back. "Does he know of
your accomplishments?"


The mechanic couldn't help but chuckle. "Olivier, you're too much...yes,
I've told him my past. It was a long time ago. Now I've got my shop, and
Nadia's got a whole racetrack to run!" he jabbed at his former mentor.


"I must tell you, my friend: this woman likes to be in charge!" The banker
guffawed as Nadia rolled her eyes. "Oh, Roberto, you must stay for dinner;
we have to make up for lost time, yes?"


At this, Nadia jumped in. "Darling, I just told you he has a garage and a
boyfriend to look after. I'm sure he has to be back home at a decent
hour..." she surmised, glancing at Roberto.


"But you must stay for the night qualifying session! Nadia told me you were
a speed demon late at night on the street," Olivier said.


Roberto couldn't contain his excitement. "You guys do night qualifiers?"


"Yeah we do," Nadia replied. "You gotta see the lighting rigs we installed
this year. It's like Vegas compared to what we used to do!" she said with a
laugh. Roberto couldn't remember the last time Nadia laughed.


So he stayed for dinner, a decadent five-course meal that totally broke
Roberto's diet; he couldn't turn down Nadia and Olivier's hospitality.
Their VIP dining room had a great view of the two-lane raceway; as Roberto
watched pairs of racers speed down the quarter-mile, the former rider
longed to head downstairs to the crew pit, get on a bike, then give it full
throttle on that strip of pavement. He could almost smell the exhaust and
feel the night air whipping past.


-----
-----


Thanks again for reading! I hope you enjoyed this intense chapter. We're
getting close to the end of this story, and I promise to finish it with a
bang! Feedback is always welcomed at chicostodos@gmail.com. Also, feel free
to check out the prequel to this story on Amazon; just search for "Chicos
Todos Opposite Attractions Can This Be Possible?".