A/N: Reviews, please? I'd appreciate it :) -DL
Chapter 5
Leon laughed as he danced, his eyes sparkling as he looked at Caleb sitting at a small table beside the dance floor. This was the best ‘non-date’ that he’d ever been on! Going out at night with Caleb was fun. So far this week they’d been to dinner together, had taken in a movie, and had attended a concert together. Now it was the weekend, and Caleb had agreed to come dancing with him. Leon loved to dance, and he also loved to show off. And from the appreciative way that many of the men in the club were looking at him, he was doing both equally well. God, it was good to have a gay friend living right across from him!
Sure, he’d much rather be jumping Caleb’s bones regularly, but since the other man wasn’t ready for a relationship friendship was almost as good. They could talk about anything under the sun, they seemed to have many things in common, and Leon always enjoyed himself when he was with Caleb. Except for the lack of sex, this was almost the perfect relationship…
Oh, but he felt that lack of sex keenly. Sure, he could pick up a guy here at the club and drag him home. But he still didn’t like one-night stands, and he couldn’t very well do that with Caleb sitting right there anyway. Leon was still hopeful that he might be able to bring Caleb around to the idea of having a relationship with him, and he didn’t think that dragging random guys home to have sex with him would further his cause any. So he lived with celibacy, even though it sucked even harder now that he knew that Caleb found him attractive in return.
“Hey, baby,” a voice purred in his ear, even as hands settled on his hips from behind, “Wanna get out of here? Show me those moves somewhere more private?”
Leon turned an awful frown on the man who’d stepped up behind him. “No,” he said shortly. “I don’t.”
The man pretend-pouted. “Aww, come on,” he coaxed. “I’ll show you a good time, I promise.”
Leon tried to step away from him, his brows snapping down when the man refused to release him. “I said no!” he cried. “Get lost!”
Anger flashed over the guy’s face. “Hey, don’t be like that,” he growled. “It’s not nice.” and he began to pull Leon toward him, proving to be stronger than him as he attempted to get away.
Leon felt a flash of panic race through him, but just then a hand came down on the guy’s left wrist and twisted it. He howled in pain as his arm was jerked into the air, his face twisting as he panted: “Hey! What the fuck are you doing?!”
“That’s a question I might ask, too,” Caleb growled as he held the man’s wrist in a lock that was causing his legs to buckle out from under him. “It doesn’t look like my friend wants to go anywhere with you, but you were trying to drag him off the dance floor. No means no, pal. You understand that now?” and he twisted the guy’s wrist a bit more, making his face go white.
“Yeah, yeah! Just please let me go!” the guy whimpered.
Caleb let go of his wrist contemptuously, and he grasped it with the good one as he stumbled away off the dance floor. “You okay, Leon?” Caleb asked him.
“Yeah,” he husked. “Thanks, Caleb. Though maybe you shouldn’t have manhandled him like that…?” he said doubtfully.
Caleb shrugged. “I don’t like guys who try to force their attentions on people, whether male or female. And that’s what he was doing, right? You didn’t want to go with him?”
“No, I didn’t,” Leon said.
“There you have it, then. But we could leave if you’re afraid that he’ll call the cops or something.”
Leon nodded, grateful for this suggestion. “I don’t want you to get in trouble,” he said anxiously.
Caleb grinned. “I don’t, either,” he replied. “Come on, let’s go. We’ll hang out at your apartment instead.”
Leon was glad to leave the club. They’d both come in his car, because he so seldom drank anything but wine that he could usually be counted on as a designated driver. Caleb got in the passenger’s side, as Leon got behind the wheel. “I was having a good time until that jerk showed up,” he muttered as he started the engine.
Caleb chuckled. “Yeah, I could see that,” he agreed easily. “You really love to dance, huh?”
“Yes, I do,” Leon remarked. “Don’t you like to? You never came out on the floor.”
“Well, when I dance I tend to look like a robot doing the shimmy. Very embarrassing,” Caleb admitted wryly.
Leon laughed. “I’m sure it’s not that bad,” he said.
“Oh, it is. But I was happy just to watch you have fun. I’m really enjoying hanging out with you, Leon.”
“I’m enjoying it too,” he said, negotiating through the evening traffic. “It’s really good to have a gay friend living so close to me. I can only go out with my other gay friends like once or twice a month because I’m so busy. And my straight friends are all pretty much ’married, with children’ types, so they don’t want to be out on the singles scene. Which I can’t blame them for. They’ve got something much better at home, so why waste their time out partying? If I had something better at home, I’d probably never go out either.”
“Agreed,” Caleb said, leaning back in his seat. “If I didn’t have you, I think I’d be very lonely right now. I don’t even have a cat to keep me company.”
“Well, we can share Felina,” Leon told him with a quick smile. “She already adores you.”
“That’s because I really like her,” Caleb said. “Cats always know.”
Leon had to agree with that. They stopped at a store briefly to rent a movie from a DVD kiosk and buy some snacks to eat while they watched it, then headed home. At his apartment, Felina came to the door to meow at both of them demandingly. Caleb reached down to scoop the pretty white cat up in his arms and scratch her under the chin. “Yes, we’re back, pretty girl,” he told her. “We’ll keep you company while we watch a movie tonight.”
Leon smiled as he put the bags on the table and began to pull things out of it. He opened a bag of kettle-cooked chips and poured them into a small bowl, and used another bowl for the white cheddar popcorn. He also cut up some fruit into slices to give them a somewhat more healthy alternative, while Caleb set up the DVD player and made much of Felina at the same time. Finally they were ready for their evening in, settling down on the couch together.
Leon kept the chips bowl on his lap, and Caleb took the popcorn bowl. Leon set the plate of fruit slices and some bottles of flavored water on the coffee table in front of them, while Caleb hit the ’start’ button on the remote control. They’d rented an action-comedy, which suited both of their tastes. They watched the movie, ate their snacks, and only said a few things here and there. It was a comfortable silence, and Leon was having even more fun than he’d been having at the dance club. The only problem was that Caleb was sitting so close to him on the couch - he was acutely aware of the man’s hard-muscled body so close that he could reach out and touch it…and boy, did he want to! He moved a little, uncomfortably, feeling the press of an erection against the front of the pants he was wearing.
Leon slid his eyes sideways to look at Caleb’s face. God, he loved the man’s bone structure! It was so elegant and spare, all angles and curves. He longed to run his fingers along Caleb’s cheekbones reverently. He swallowed thickly, picking up his bottle of flavored water so that he could take a long gulp to combat a suddenly extremely dry mouth. He needed to stop this. Surreptitiously ogling his friend was a bad idea. It only made him more horny and crazy. Made him want to jump on top of Caleb and try to force the man to have sex with him. Not that that would work, but sometimes he got crazy enough that he wanted to try anyway…
He looked blindly back at the screen, locking a low moan in his throat. God, he needed to get laid! But unfortunately, the only person he wanted to get laid with happened to be sitting on the couch next to him, hanging out and ‘just being friends’ with him! Made him want to tear his hair out! Curse Caleb’s abusive last relationship! Leno wanted to track his former boyfriend down and beat him vigorously with a pasta ladle.
On his part, Caleb was having even more trouble. He, at least, knew that the abusive relationship story had been a total lie, a story he’d had to tell to explain why he was thoroughly attracted to Leon but wouldn’t touch him. His unruly penis kept bugging him, pointing out such things as how softly pink Leon’s lips were, and shouldn’t they find out what those lips tasted like? And wouldn’t he like to see those lips wrapped around a certain sensitive part of himself? Jesus, he was losing his mind…
Worst assignment ever! If he’d just moved in next to Leon normally, he’d already be dating the man. And they’d probably already be sleeping together, too. He’d be happy. Instead, he was miserable because he had to keep his distance, and worse he had to spy on Leon and lie to him about it. If he ever found out why Caleb was really here…he felt a chill run down his spine at the very thought. But it was likely that, one way or the other, Leon would find out that he was Caleb’s assignment, and that his ‘friend’ had been following him around, watching him, and bugging his apartment. Okay, God hated him. To put him in a position like this, his dream job vs. the man of his dreams…somebody just shoot him now.
Leon’s eyes started flickering. His head began to nod, and his breathing became shallow and even. Much to Caleb’s chagrin, his blonde head came to rest on his shoulder naturally. His pink mouth was slightly open as he breathed, and his warm body rested against Caleb’s arm. He groaned a bit, but he also lifted his arm and put it around Leon’s shoulders. His fingers stroked the soft hair at Leon’s temple gently. “Man, this sucks,” he muttered to himself, looking at the screen where the movie was still playing. “If I had my way, baby,” he said even more softly, almost under his breath, “I’d drag you off to your bedroom and fuck you until you couldn’t walk anymore,” he sighed, as Leon continued to sleep so sweetly against him. “I love my job, but at this moment I’m not really sure that I love it THAT much. Jesus, what the hell am I going to do?”
But neither the sleeping man nor the cat curled up on his knee bothered to answer, and Caleb was left to suffer on his own…
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Chapter 5
Leon laughed as he danced, his eyes sparkling as he looked at Caleb sitting at a small table beside the dance floor. This was the best ‘non-date’ that he’d ever been on! Going out at night with Caleb was fun. So far this week they’d been to dinner together, had taken in a movie, and had attended a concert together. Now it was the weekend, and Caleb had agreed to come dancing with him. Leon loved to dance, and he also loved to show off. And from the appreciative way that many of the men in the club were looking at him, he was doing both equally well. God, it was good to have a gay friend living right across from him!
Sure, he’d much rather be jumping Caleb’s bones regularly, but since the other man wasn’t ready for a relationship friendship was almost as good. They could talk about anything under the sun, they seemed to have many things in common, and Leon always enjoyed himself when he was with Caleb. Except for the lack of sex, this was almost the perfect relationship…
Oh, but he felt that lack of sex keenly. Sure, he could pick up a guy here at the club and drag him home. But he still didn’t like one-night stands, and he couldn’t very well do that with Caleb sitting right there anyway. Leon was still hopeful that he might be able to bring Caleb around to the idea of having a relationship with him, and he didn’t think that dragging random guys home to have sex with him would further his cause any. So he lived with celibacy, even though it sucked even harder now that he knew that Caleb found him attractive in return.
“Hey, baby,” a voice purred in his ear, even as hands settled on his hips from behind, “Wanna get out of here? Show me those moves somewhere more private?”
Leon turned an awful frown on the man who’d stepped up behind him. “No,” he said shortly. “I don’t.”
The man pretend-pouted. “Aww, come on,” he coaxed. “I’ll show you a good time, I promise.”
Leon tried to step away from him, his brows snapping down when the man refused to release him. “I said no!” he cried. “Get lost!”
Anger flashed over the guy’s face. “Hey, don’t be like that,” he growled. “It’s not nice.” and he began to pull Leon toward him, proving to be stronger than him as he attempted to get away.
Leon felt a flash of panic race through him, but just then a hand came down on the guy’s left wrist and twisted it. He howled in pain as his arm was jerked into the air, his face twisting as he panted: “Hey! What the fuck are you doing?!”
“That’s a question I might ask, too,” Caleb growled as he held the man’s wrist in a lock that was causing his legs to buckle out from under him. “It doesn’t look like my friend wants to go anywhere with you, but you were trying to drag him off the dance floor. No means no, pal. You understand that now?” and he twisted the guy’s wrist a bit more, making his face go white.
“Yeah, yeah! Just please let me go!” the guy whimpered.
Caleb let go of his wrist contemptuously, and he grasped it with the good one as he stumbled away off the dance floor. “You okay, Leon?” Caleb asked him.
“Yeah,” he husked. “Thanks, Caleb. Though maybe you shouldn’t have manhandled him like that…?” he said doubtfully.
Caleb shrugged. “I don’t like guys who try to force their attentions on people, whether male or female. And that’s what he was doing, right? You didn’t want to go with him?”
“No, I didn’t,” Leon said.
“There you have it, then. But we could leave if you’re afraid that he’ll call the cops or something.”
Leon nodded, grateful for this suggestion. “I don’t want you to get in trouble,” he said anxiously.
Caleb grinned. “I don’t, either,” he replied. “Come on, let’s go. We’ll hang out at your apartment instead.”
Leon was glad to leave the club. They’d both come in his car, because he so seldom drank anything but wine that he could usually be counted on as a designated driver. Caleb got in the passenger’s side, as Leon got behind the wheel. “I was having a good time until that jerk showed up,” he muttered as he started the engine.
Caleb chuckled. “Yeah, I could see that,” he agreed easily. “You really love to dance, huh?”
“Yes, I do,” Leon remarked. “Don’t you like to? You never came out on the floor.”
“Well, when I dance I tend to look like a robot doing the shimmy. Very embarrassing,” Caleb admitted wryly.
Leon laughed. “I’m sure it’s not that bad,” he said.
“Oh, it is. But I was happy just to watch you have fun. I’m really enjoying hanging out with you, Leon.”
“I’m enjoying it too,” he said, negotiating through the evening traffic. “It’s really good to have a gay friend living so close to me. I can only go out with my other gay friends like once or twice a month because I’m so busy. And my straight friends are all pretty much ’married, with children’ types, so they don’t want to be out on the singles scene. Which I can’t blame them for. They’ve got something much better at home, so why waste their time out partying? If I had something better at home, I’d probably never go out either.”
“Agreed,” Caleb said, leaning back in his seat. “If I didn’t have you, I think I’d be very lonely right now. I don’t even have a cat to keep me company.”
“Well, we can share Felina,” Leon told him with a quick smile. “She already adores you.”
“That’s because I really like her,” Caleb said. “Cats always know.”
Leon had to agree with that. They stopped at a store briefly to rent a movie from a DVD kiosk and buy some snacks to eat while they watched it, then headed home. At his apartment, Felina came to the door to meow at both of them demandingly. Caleb reached down to scoop the pretty white cat up in his arms and scratch her under the chin. “Yes, we’re back, pretty girl,” he told her. “We’ll keep you company while we watch a movie tonight.”
Leon smiled as he put the bags on the table and began to pull things out of it. He opened a bag of kettle-cooked chips and poured them into a small bowl, and used another bowl for the white cheddar popcorn. He also cut up some fruit into slices to give them a somewhat more healthy alternative, while Caleb set up the DVD player and made much of Felina at the same time. Finally they were ready for their evening in, settling down on the couch together.
Leon kept the chips bowl on his lap, and Caleb took the popcorn bowl. Leon set the plate of fruit slices and some bottles of flavored water on the coffee table in front of them, while Caleb hit the ’start’ button on the remote control. They’d rented an action-comedy, which suited both of their tastes. They watched the movie, ate their snacks, and only said a few things here and there. It was a comfortable silence, and Leon was having even more fun than he’d been having at the dance club. The only problem was that Caleb was sitting so close to him on the couch - he was acutely aware of the man’s hard-muscled body so close that he could reach out and touch it…and boy, did he want to! He moved a little, uncomfortably, feeling the press of an erection against the front of the pants he was wearing.
Leon slid his eyes sideways to look at Caleb’s face. God, he loved the man’s bone structure! It was so elegant and spare, all angles and curves. He longed to run his fingers along Caleb’s cheekbones reverently. He swallowed thickly, picking up his bottle of flavored water so that he could take a long gulp to combat a suddenly extremely dry mouth. He needed to stop this. Surreptitiously ogling his friend was a bad idea. It only made him more horny and crazy. Made him want to jump on top of Caleb and try to force the man to have sex with him. Not that that would work, but sometimes he got crazy enough that he wanted to try anyway…
He looked blindly back at the screen, locking a low moan in his throat. God, he needed to get laid! But unfortunately, the only person he wanted to get laid with happened to be sitting on the couch next to him, hanging out and ‘just being friends’ with him! Made him want to tear his hair out! Curse Caleb’s abusive last relationship! Leno wanted to track his former boyfriend down and beat him vigorously with a pasta ladle.
On his part, Caleb was having even more trouble. He, at least, knew that the abusive relationship story had been a total lie, a story he’d had to tell to explain why he was thoroughly attracted to Leon but wouldn’t touch him. His unruly penis kept bugging him, pointing out such things as how softly pink Leon’s lips were, and shouldn’t they find out what those lips tasted like? And wouldn’t he like to see those lips wrapped around a certain sensitive part of himself? Jesus, he was losing his mind…
Worst assignment ever! If he’d just moved in next to Leon normally, he’d already be dating the man. And they’d probably already be sleeping together, too. He’d be happy. Instead, he was miserable because he had to keep his distance, and worse he had to spy on Leon and lie to him about it. If he ever found out why Caleb was really here…he felt a chill run down his spine at the very thought. But it was likely that, one way or the other, Leon would find out that he was Caleb’s assignment, and that his ‘friend’ had been following him around, watching him, and bugging his apartment. Okay, God hated him. To put him in a position like this, his dream job vs. the man of his dreams…somebody just shoot him now.
Leon’s eyes started flickering. His head began to nod, and his breathing became shallow and even. Much to Caleb’s chagrin, his blonde head came to rest on his shoulder naturally. His pink mouth was slightly open as he breathed, and his warm body rested against Caleb’s arm. He groaned a bit, but he also lifted his arm and put it around Leon’s shoulders. His fingers stroked the soft hair at Leon’s temple gently. “Man, this sucks,” he muttered to himself, looking at the screen where the movie was still playing. “If I had my way, baby,” he said even more softly, almost under his breath, “I’d drag you off to your bedroom and fuck you until you couldn’t walk anymore,” he sighed, as Leon continued to sleep so sweetly against him. “I love my job, but at this moment I’m not really sure that I love it THAT much. Jesus, what the hell am I going to do?”
But neither the sleeping man nor the cat curled up on his knee bothered to answer, and Caleb was left to suffer on his own…
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