ACT 2: First Dates and Original Love Songs
“ONE PUUUUUUUUUUUUUNCH!”
I’m violently jerked from my peaceful dream by the loud screeching of Jason’s alarm tone. It’s fine when I’m in my room on the other side of the hallway, but it’s a whole different story when the damn thing goes off right next to your fucking ear. The head ache that follows after being forcefully woken up sets in within a few seconds and I want to punch Jason in the neck for it.
“Good morning, sunshine.” Jason comes out of the bathroom wearing his running shorts and a grey crop top, which shows off the lower half of his magnificent torso that tapers down into a V-shape. The top is sleeveless and also shows off his well-developed arms and pecs with his nipples prominent through the thin fabric. His six-pack abs ripple as he walks over to me and I can see that he’s not wearing any underwear, since his flaccid, yet still impressively large, penis flops this way and that with every step he takes. His legs are a work of art; his thighs and calves are muscled and (in my opinion) shaped perfectly and his size 13 feet top off this wonderful specimen of a human male.
My eyes drift back up to his face. He smiles at me and I swoon internally. His baby blue eyes have an almost childish glint in them and his blonde hair is sticking up all over the place, which only adds to his already handsome features. I’ve always noticed how his nose was slightly pointed and how his ears were near-elvish in appearance. His rose colored lips, which are now curled into the most beautiful smile, are probably what I love about him the most (yes, even more than his 10-inch cock!) and his ever so lightly chiseled jawline drives me crazy. He’s fucking hot and I’m sure that he knows it! Years and years of working out has given him an almost Adonis-like appearance, not overly cut, but just enough to make the panties (and boxers) drop to the floor quicker than you can say “Fuck me, Jason Westman”.
My annoyance at being so rudely awakened vanishes along with my headache as he bends over and kisses me. His mouth tastes minty and I’m suddenly aware of my own unwashed mouth, but he doesn’t seem to care.
“I’m going for my morning run,” he says and walks over to his dresser to retrieve a pair of socks, then walks to the closet and squats down to fish out his neon green running shoes. “I’ve been slacking off these past two weeks and I can feel the flab setting in.” He looks over his shoulder and gives me goofy grin.
As if! He could not exercise for two weeks and eat all the junk food he wants and he would still not gain any weight, but that’s probably just my biased mind at work. Puberty had been good to Jason. You should have seen him when he was ten years old; he was as round as a ball and weighed a ton. Of course, I’ve only seen him like that in pictures. He was already at Adonis-level when our parents got married.
Jason flops down on the bed to put on his socks and shoes. I scooch over to him and rest my head on his back. He chuckles. “You know, it’s kind of hard for me to put on my shoes with you leaning on me like that.”
“Maybe I don’t want you to put on your shoes…”
“I’ll be back before you know it.”
It’s been a week since Jason and I officially started dating and in that time we’d managed to have sex three times. Mom and dad were out a lot these days, so we had a lot of freedom to do what we wanted. I know that I should be worried as to why my parents weren’t home a lot, but being with Jason and having him fuck me senseless always wins. The moment our clothes are off and our lips touch, the rest of the world is forgotten and nothing else matters.
“Maybe I don’t want you to go at all…”
I know how clingy I sound, but I can’t help wanting to be with him every second of every day. It’s a bit illogical to always be with your significant other, since they do have their own lives, but still. I want him all to myself all the time.
“Besides, don’t you have your own workout to start with? You know, the one where you do those provocative stretches that always leave me hard as a fucking rock?”
My face turns red. “You’ve seen…?”
“Fuck yeah, I did. That view of you doing the split with your back to the door has been in my spank bank for quite some time now.” He chuckles again. “Part of me was kind of hoping that you were doing it on purpose to tease me or some shit.”
“Maybe I was, maybe I wasn’t… I mean, I didn’t have to worry about mom or dad walking in on me, since they had their own shit to do, so yeah. But no, I didn’t do it on purpose. I always figured you were out on your morning run.”
“Well, thanks to you, I always started twenty minutes late.” He stands up. “But not today. As much as I would love to stay here and fuck your brains out… again… I also want to feel the adrenaline rush of my body in motion with sweat all over…” He gives me a quick peck on the lips. “Later, babe.” And he’s out the door. I hear him descending the stairs and smile to myself. I feel like the luckiest motherfucker in the world.
I kick off the sheets and go to my room to start on my own morning routine. I can hear the sound of nature music playing downstairs, which means that mom and dad are doing their own thing. After they’re finished they’ll probably hop into the shower and fuck like rabbits. I’m surprised that Jason and I don’t have a little brother or sister yet. Not that I want a younger sibling, nor do I not want one. I’m complicated, I know, but I just feel that kids ruin lives. I mean, I probably ruined some aspect of my parents’ lives when I was born, no matter how miniscule. Yes, they loved me to death, yet I can’t help but wonder how their lives would have been had I not been born. Maybe dad would still be alive. But that would mean that mom never got to meet David and that he would remain in his bubbling spiral of self-pity and mourning. So in a way my birth might have been a blessing. The thought makes me smile.
I pull on a pair of dark blue hot pants and shuffle through my music. David Guetta’s Nothing but the Beat should get me through my workout. That’s roughly fifty minutes of non-stop dancing. And I’ve been doing this every single day for most of my life. A huge amount of determination is needed when you enroll at the Academy. They don’t just accept any dancer, singer, or actor that shows up for an audition. I didn’t get selected the first time I auditioned. They told me that I “had more than enough talent to make it big”, but that I “lacked passion and determination”. That was about two years before I graduated High School. Mom had urged to audition early, so that I could secure a spot for when I actually graduated.
The second time, however, I was barely 30 seconds into my dance routine when Mr. Darren signaled the sound guy to cut the music. I immediately began apologizing and making up excuses, but Mr. Darren put his hand up to hush me.
“I see you listened to my advice,” he said with a smile.
“I… I did…” I replied more nervous than I’d ever been.
“Well, you applied it splendidly.” His smile broadened into a grin. “I’m just going to go ahead and write your name on the list of applicants for next year.”
That day was probably the happiest day of my life.
I start stretching and smile as I think back to my journey as a dancer. As usual I start with my arms first, then work my way down to my legs. After I’m finished stretching I press ‘Play’ and the show begins. Nothing compares to the feeling of your body losing itself to the rhythm and your mind following suit. Nothing. Not even sex, as amazing as it is with Jason. Dancing brings me to a whole other level of pleasure, both physical and mental. It’s how I can express myself to the max without having to worry about what people might say. Everything and everyone else just flies out the window when I start to move and it’s just me in the world, me and the music and my body.
I lose myself to the dance and am vaguely aware that Titanium is currently playing. It’s the last track on the album, so I should be finishing up soon. I throw my every emotion into the last few seconds of the routine and as the song comes to an end, I slowly start to drift back down to Earth, my breathing slightly labored. My body is covered in sweat and my throat is dry. I should really make it a habit of having a bottle of water handy when I exercise. I’m about to stretch when I hear the lock on my door click shut. I whip around to see Jason standing there, his own body also covered in sweat and his massive rock hard dong tenting his shorts.
“Don’t stop on my account,” he chuckles.
I smile back at him and start stretching with my back to him, so he has a nice view of my ass. I hook my thumbs in the waistband of my shorts and slowly tug them down, while wiggling my ass, which makes Jason groan and I smile to myself. I step out of the shorts and decide to tease him a little more, even though I’m already hard and want him to ravish me in every way possible. After stretching my neck and arms longer than it should’ve taken I bend over to touch my toes with my legs close together. Another groan escapes from Jason’s lips as my cheeks part and expose my puckered hole. I hold this position for a few seconds and part my legs wide enough so I can look through them at Jason. I wink at him and slowly drop down into a side split, until my balls are touching the floor.
“Fuck,” Jason swears and I hear him walk over to me. He put his hands on my ass and begins kneading the muscled mounds. “Fuck, I still can’t believe how fucking hot you are,” he whispers in my ear and nibbles neck. “On the bed…” He helps me up and I climb onto the bed with my knees on the edge, then Jason extends my legs on either side of my body, so that my parted ass cheeks are right on the edge of the mattress with my twitching hole exposed for Jason to do with as he pleases. He caresses the full length of my legs and whispers things in my ear that make me shiver with anticipation.
He squats down behind me with his hands on my ass cheeks and jiggles them around a bit, before I feel his nose poking at my sphincter. Then he buries his face between my cheeks and breathes in deep. “Fuck,” he sighs when he comes back up for air, “your ass smells so fucking hot.”
“Don’t you wanna know what it tastes like?” I’ve barely finished the question when I feel his hot wet tongue lash out, which sends a jolt of electricity throughout my body, followed immediately by two hard smacks on each of my cheeks. “Fuck!” It hurts, but it feels so good at the same time.
“Don’t tell me what to do,” Jason chuckles and dives back in, his hands on my ass cheeks and parting them as far as they could go, while he munches on my hole with an almost savage ferocity using his tongue, lips, and teeth. I’m still amazed at how good Jason is with his mouth. What he lacks in cock-sucking, he more than makes up for with eating ass. He’s a fucking pro!
“Yip yip,” Appa barks from the corner of the room and the moment is dead. I no longer feel Jason’s mouth on my ass and my boner is going down. Funny how the smallest thing can kill the mood. I’d totally forgotten that the little shit existed. I glare at the beady little eyes peaking over the edge of the box and find myself wishing that Jason hadn’t gotten me a puppy to make-up for being an asshead. See what I mean? Kids ruin things.
Jason walks over to the box and picks the puppy up. “Is Appa hungry?” he coos, which has got to be the most adorable thing ever. “Is the little guy hungry? Oh, yes he is.” Jason kisses Appa on his wet snout and the puppy instinctively licks him on the mouth. “Hmm, give daddy a kiss. Who’s a good boy? Appa’s a good boy.”
“Be sure to brush your teeth before you kiss me again,” I say jokingly.
“Aww, mommy’s a grumpy grump this morning. Oh, yes she is.”
“Hey, why do I have to be the mommy?”
“I don’t know, you just seem to fit the roll perfectly.” Jason grins at me innocently.
“Says the guy who treats a puppy as a human being.”
“In a way dogs are better than humans, so yeah.”
“Yeah, I know, I just have a thing against cute and cuddly things.” I walk over to them and scratch Appa behind his ears. “He’s a cute little shit, isn’t he? Just like his ‘daddy’.” I kiss Jason on the cheek. “I’m going to take a shower.”
“Okay, babe,” Jason and puckers his lips, wanting me to kiss him.
“Yeah, I don’t think so,” I laugh and walk into the bathroom. “So, where are you taking me tonight?” I ask as I step under spray of hot water.
“It’s a surprise,” Jason says as he stands in the doorway with Appa still in his arms. It’s so fucking cute that I want to take a picture, but I guess that’s going to have to wait till later.
“Could you at least give me hint?”
“Nope.”
“Jerk.”
“Ach, you love me.”
“I do.”
“I wasn’t talking to you, I was talking to Appa.”
“That thing better not replace me or I’ll beat the homo out of you and send you crawling back to Amy Dawson.”
“I love it when you talk dirty.”
I finish up, step out of the shower stall and Jason hands me a towel. While brushing my teeth I notice that he’s looking at me weird. I spit, rinse and turn to him. “What’s up? Why you looking at me all weird?”
He shrugs. “Nothing. Just can’t believe how happy I am with you.”
I smile. “You make me happy too, Jason.” I walk over to him and kiss him on the lips, not caring that only moments ago Appa infested them with his dog cooties. He makes a growling whimpering sound and I scratch him behind his ears. “Mommy loves you too, you little shit. But don’t expect any kisses from me.”
“Ooh, tough love. I’ll remember that for when we have kids.”
My eyes go wide. Kids? Did he just say “for when we have kids”? Yes. Yes, he did. Oh, shit, this is bad. What do I tell him? How do I tell him that I have no intention of having a kid, much less kids? I don’t want kids. Hell, I fucking hate the evil little gremlins! I struggle to find the words to say to not make it sound too harsh, but my mind goes completely blank. The truth. I have to tell him the truth.
“Jason…”
“Oh boy, I don’t like the sound of that.”
“Maybe we should sit down for this…”
* * *
The silence in the car is deafening, almost awkward. Why, you ask? Jason and I had a fight. Yeah, not even a week into our relationship and we had a fight. About what, you ask? Kids. We had a fight about the fact that I don’t want kids. Gods, even when they weren’t around and simply hypothetical, the little shits ruined lives.
I look over to Jason, who is humming along to the song playing on the radio. He looks so handsome with his new haircut, which he got especially for this occasion. Our first date. He’s wearing a snug-fitting white T-shirt with a large black ‘X’ on it at chest level and a pair of brand new blue jeans, also acquired for our date. He smells amazing; I can’t really place the fragrance, but my money is on Giorgio Armani or maybe Driven? I don’t know. All I know is that he looks hot as fuck and smells like what I imagine God smells like.
He turns his head to me. “What’s up?”
“Nothing.”
“Ah, come one, I know that look. You’re overthinking things again.” He smiles at me.
“I’m sorry.”
“For what?”
My eyes fill with tears and the words catch in my throat, before I can answer him. I hastily wipe the salty streams of water away and, clearing my throat, I try again. “For the whole ‘kids’ thing.” I sound pathetic. I know it. But Jason has the warmest smile on his face that makes me feel like a complete idiot for not wanting to have his babies. I half expect him to interrupt me, but he says nothing, so I continue. “It’s just that… I don’t know… I love my freedom and I just feel like a kid could ruin that for me. It’s selfish, I know, but I guess you can’t miss what you never had… or wanted.” Fresh tears stream down my cheeks and Jason wipes them away with his thumb, letting it linger on my left side and gently circling my cheek.
“Elijah, baby…”
Fuck, I love it when he calls me ‘baby’.
“It’s okay… I shouldn’t have just assumed that you wanted kids without discussing it with you first. Why are we even having a conversation about kids to begin with? We’re nineteen years old! We literally have our whole lives ahead of us!” He pulls over on the side of the road just as we’re about to drive into town. “Do I want kids? Yes. Would I break up with you to go on a wild goose chase to find a guy who does want to have kids with me? Probably.” His joke doesn’t escape me and I reward him with a smile, which he counters with a look of gratitude. “But seriously, I want to be with you. For as long as possible. And I would like that to be until the day I die or, you know, you die.” Again I appreciate his jests and this time I reward him with a toothy grin. “Ach, you’re so cute when cry…” He leans in for a kiss, but before he kisses me, he whispers, “I love you and I’m not going to let something as trivial as ‘having kids’ come between us. We’ll cross that bridge when we get to it.” Then he kisses me tenderly and I fall in love with him all over again, my stomach is bursting with butterflies and my heart is racing in my chest.
“I love you too, Jason. I just… You know… Fuck, I sound so fucking stupid…”
“Hey, stop that. You’re allowed to have your own opinion. Being in a relationship doesn’t mean that we have to start acting all ‘we are Legion for we are many’, it’s all about compromise. And you’re more important to me than a bunch of kids.” And he kisses me again.
Fuck. Fuck, fuck, fuck! I’m a total asshead. And that creeping feeling of guilt is getting a tighter grip on me. Why should he be the one to give up something for this relationship? Something he clearly wanted. A lot. Why couldn’t it be the both of us? If he can give up on kids, I could sure as hell give up on my freedom. Who needs freedom when a guy like Jason is head over heels in love with you? Godammit, Elijah, so fucking selfish.
“Let’s not give up on anything just yet,” I say with a sad smile. “You’re right. We’ve only been dating for a week and it’s way too early for baby talk, so how about we drop this for a year or two and let future Elijah and Jason worry about it.”
“Deal,” Jason chuckles.
“Now let’s get to the theater. Wouldn’t want you to be late for a date with the X-Men.”
“You’re amazing, you know that?” he says with a sigh.
“No, I’m a sad excuse for a human being and you should dump me before I break your heart into a million pieces.”
“That’s a risk I’m willing to take.”
“Such a charmer.”
We drive the rest of the way in blissful silence, occasionally stealing glances at each other and smiling like a bunch of lovesick queens in a bad here! movie. At one point Jason even takes one hand off the wheel to rub my thigh. The gesture is very unoriginal, but super effective; I’m hard in an instant.
“If you keep doing that we’re going to be late for the movie.”
“Hmm, we can’t have that,” he says with a smirk. “I wouldn’t miss the beginning of this movie for no one and nothing, not even you. Sorry, babe.”
“Such a charmer,” I say again, this time jokingly.
We arrive at the movie theater and I’m surprised at how many grown men are dressed up as their favorite X-Man. Jason insists I take a picture of him with a guy dressed as Deadpool and at least five more with people dressed up as other characters. Then he almost (almost!) squeals like a deranged high school mean girl when he spots a life-size standing display of the characters. He rushes over to it and has me take a dozen or so pictures.
“All geeked out, soon-to-be-single-and-living-in-his-mother’s-basement?” I joke as I hand him his phone.
“Are you kidding me?” he gasps excitedly while rapidly swiping through the pictures I’d taken. “This is just the foreplay. The main event hasn’t even begun yet and I’m already hard as a fucking rock.”
My eyes drift down to his crotch. Wow, he wasn’t kidding! I can see the clear outlines of his cock pressed against the fabric of his jeans as it snakes its way down his thigh. I involuntarily lick my lips and feel my own cock swelling in my pants. “Keep it in your pants, you nerd,” I joke, both to distract him and myself from both our arousals.
I see the usher motioning the large crowd to come towards him and all of a sudden I’m being dragged away by a sea of superheroes in all shapes and sizes. I don’t find Jason again until I enter the designated auditorium and he’s waving at me from a seat in one of the middle rows. How did he even get in before me? When did he walk past me to secure the best seats in the house? I stop questioning shit, walk over to him and flop down in the seat next to where he’s sitting. He’s already bought two large bags of popcorn and two large sodas. When did he even get the time to buy all this?!
“How…?” I start ask, while turning to him.
“Don’t question it, babe,” he says with a knowing smirk, “just don’t question. The less you know, the better.”
I laugh. This is nice. Me on a date with Jason. Who’d have thought this is where we’d end up? From being stepbrothers who couldn’t stand each other to being madly in love and fucking like rabbits every chance we get. I’ve been on dates before, but this one was different. The others guys brought me to fancy restaurants and tried way too hard to impress me, whereas Jason took a chance and invited me into his natural habitat. Sure, he’s been doing that for years, introducing me to his favorite animated TV shows or sci-fi/fantasy movies, but this is different. I feel included. He’s opened his doors to me and let me in completely. And it makes me feel both honored and ashamed. Ashamed, because he’s such a free spirit. Not scared of scaring me away by showing me his inner child. And here I am scared of letting go of my freedom. I can’t help but smile. He’s more amazing than I thought he was and it makes me feel like the luckiest son of a bitch (sorry, mother) to ever walk this earth.
Jason hands me bag of popcorn and a soda.
“You know we could have easily shared, right?”
Jason looks at me like I just told him to stick his tongue down the throat of the old lady, who had no business being here, sitting next to him. He blinks a couple of times, then says in a solemn tone and a serious look on his handsome face: “Elijah Connorson, I love you to the moon and back. I’d die for you. Kill for you. Hell, I’d punch a kid in the fucking throat for you…”
“Aww,” I squeak and put my hand on my heart.
“But I will never ever share a bag of popcorn with you. That’s some unholy shit right there.”
“Gotcha, mistah Jay,” I say in my best Harley Quinn impersonation and wink at him.
This time it’s his turn to put his hand on his heart. “Oh, I’ve taught you well, my little grasshopper.” He leans in and plants a quick peck on my lips, still cautious about people seeing him being all mushy with another guy, but I don’t mind at all. That’s a boundary to be broken down another day. That’s when the lights dim and Jason leans back into his seat munching on his popcorn and sipping soda. Beautiful. That’s what he is. Not just physically, but emotionally as well. All he had to do was be true to himself in order for this beautiful human being sitting next to me to blossom into what he is today.
The movie starts and Jason seems to forget I’m there, but then I feel his hand searching for mine in the dark. He finds it and interlaces his fingers with mine, all while his eyes are glued to the silver screen and the other stuffs his mouth with popcorn. I smile and that’s how we watch the movie: holding hands. Jason lets go when Sansa Stark (the actress’ name eludes me) unleashes her power in the form a Phoenix and completely loses his shit, sitting on the edge of his seat with his mouth wide open in a silent scream and holding his head. He’s boning hard right now, I know it and when the nerdgasm subsides, Jason leans back into his seat and I swear that I can see tears streaming from under his 3D-glasses.
“You okay?” I ask, just a tiny bit concerned.
“Just give me a minute,” he replies in a shaky voice.
I lean in and whisper, “Are you hard right now?” in his ear.
“You have no fucking idea,” he whispers back, which makes me snicker. Part of me wants to give him a handjob, but another part of me thinks about the mess and noise we’re going to make should I give him said handjob, so I don’t. That’ll have to wait till later. I kiss him on the cheek and let him enjoy the remainder of the movie in silence.
* * *
“It was a bit underwhelming, to be perfectly honest,” Jason complains as we leave the movie theater, a rolled up poster carefully clutched between trembling fingers. He’d managed to get the poster, since he knew the person in charge of the promo material, which is also how he got in before me. Jason had called this “inside man” to reserve the best seat in the theater for the two of us and had also ordered the snacks and drinks beforehand. Damn, he doesn’t kid around when it comes to treating a guy to a stellar date. “I mean, it was good but it wasn’t Days of Future Past good. Still better than BvS though. Now that was a major crapfest…”
“Well,” I try to chime in, “the psycho chick with the sword was pretty cool.”
Jason lets out a disgusted gasp. “How dare you?! First of all, her name is Psylocke and second of all, you uncultured swine, her weapon of choice is a katana.” He glares at me with his lower lip sticking out, but I can’t take him seriously because one, I don’t give a fuck about being accurate and two, his facial expression is fucking adorable.
“Oh, calm down, you nerd,” I chuckle and pat him gently on the cheek. “I enjoyed the movie and now I’m starving.”
His pouty face disappears and is replaced by a broad grin. “Boy, do I have a surprise for you.” The surprise is a karaoke bar. I try to hide my disappointment, but it’s evident on my face and Jason notices. He simply smiles at me and takes my hand. We enter the small building and immediately wind up in a narrow hallway which is decorated with paintings of various acts of debauchery in a swirling mess of a thousand colors. The walls are also lined with different colored lights in red, blue, and green with a lone yellow at the end of the hall way. The lights illuminate Jason’s smiling face, giving him an almost ethereal appearance. He looks at me and stops dead in his tracks.
“What is it?” I ask.
Jason says nothing, He just stares at me with the warmest smile. His hands then caress my face and he pulls me in for a kiss. A deep long tongue-twisting kiss that leaves me breathless.
“What was that for?” I gasp.
“You look… like an angel…” He says with that same expression hopeless devotion. “I just had to kiss you. I had to.” He circles my cheeks with his thumbs. “So beautiful.”
I feel my face turning red and am thankful for the lights on the wall. “You say that a lot,” I giggle.
“I say a lot of things a lot, but somehow it just never seems enough.”
Shit, that was smooth. I don’t know what to say to that, so I just stare up into his baby blue eyes, the two things not affected by the lights, and try not to get lost in them, but it’s too late. They swallow me up and I’m swirling in a vortex of emotions that I’ve never experienced before. With none of my previous boyfriends/lovers. Is this it? Is this love? “Jason…” I pull his lips to mine and we lose ourselves in each other mouths for what seems like an eternity. Only when we’re interrupted by the sound of the door slamming shut, do we break apart. The elderly couple that has just entered the hallway looks at us, their illuminated faces decorated with a smile.
The woman walks over to us and takes both our hands in hers. “Cherish this,” she says. “Never let go.”
I’m at a loss for words, but Jason speaks for the both of us when he says, “We will and won’t. In that specific order.” And he smiles brightly at the woman, which she returns with one of her own. Then he looks at me again and gives me a quick peck. “Let’s go.” He takes my hand again and we walk towards the yellow light above a red door, I look back long enough to see the woman take her husband’s hand and kiss him tenderly on the lips and I swear that it’s the sweetest thing.
“Brace yourself,” Jason says, while pushing the door open and I should’ve listened, because when we enter the bar, it absolutely takes my breath away. It has an almost colosseum-like feel to it with rows and rows of tables and booths on either side of the door in a half circle with the actual bar area in the center of it all. The floor is tiled black and white like a chess board and that’s when I notice that tables and chairs represent chess pieces. The entire bar is one big chess board! The walls are tiled the same as the floor and are lined with torch-like lamps that give the entire space a warm and cozy feel. It’s simple yet elegant and I love it!
“Jason…”
“Yeah, I know,” he says and kisses me on the cheek. “Nothing but the best for you.” And he ushers me to a circular salon table near the bar area, pulls back the horse-shaped high chair for me, then takes a seat on the opposite side of me. The table is equipped with a single scented candle, a napkin holder and two menus. The tablecloth is (surprise, surprise!) tiled black and white, as are the napkins. “I wanted a booth, so we could have a bit more privacy, but they were all out before I could get my grubby little paws on one.” He laughs. “But this table has its advantages. We’re right in front of the stage.”
“Stage?”
“Yeah.” Jason points to the bar and I see it. There are three steps leading up to the bar that go all around it. Each step is colored by a set of lights in a different color: the top step is colored red, the middle is blue and the lowest, and broadest, step is greenlit and I can see how it could function as podium of some kind. “And look over there.” He points to above the main entrance where there is huge blank space, then he guides my eyes to a mechanism above the bar area, suspended on a vertical beam, with a bunch of cables protruding out if it snaking its way up the metallic pole.
“What’s that?” I ask, suddenly very curious.
“You’ll see,” he answers with a smile, “but first…”
“Let us take a selfie?” I joke.
“Yes,” he says, while fishing his phone out of his pocket, “let us.” He stands up from his chair and walks over to my side of the table, squats down next to me and holds out his phone. “Say ‘best boyfriend ever’.”
“Best boyfriend ever,” I say and am moments later blinded by the flash of the camera. “Let me see.” After looking at it himself he shows me the picture with a satisfied grin on his face. In the picture my mouth is half-open and it seems like I’m rolling my eyes. Jason, on the other hand, felt the need to make a duck face which makes him look adorably ridiculous. “Delete it.”
“Not a chance. You look so fucking cute.”
“Jason, look at me. I can, nay, will not allow our first selfie as a couple to be this horrid blasphemous piece of trash. Delete. It. Now.” I try my hardest to seem serious, but he has this look of utter satisfaction and almost childish excitement on his face that I can’t help but crack up. “Fine, whatever, do with it what you want.”
“You’re the best,” he says and pecks myeon the lips, then goes back to his seat. “Now, let’s eat!” He opens up his menu and scans each and every single one of the ten pages with an almost determined look on his face, but I’m sure that he’d already made up his mind on the first page, which is where they offer the burger combos.
I smile to myself and browse through the menu, until I feel a set of eyes on me and look up to see Jason staring at me and smiling like a love-struck idiot. I fear that I might have something in my teeth, but then I remember that I haven’t had anything yet.
“See anything you like?”
The most delicious smell wafts over from the kitchen, located behind the bar, and my stomach makes a sound that is reminiscent of a dying whale, not that I know what a dying whale sounds like, which seems to summon the waiter to our table. Andreas, his name tag reads. He’s a tall man with slight Mediterranean features. In the dim light of the restaurant his skin tone seems to be olive-like with a healthy bush of dark brown curls resting above a pair of intense brown eyes. His smile is broad and genuine and a fashionable goatee tops off this foreign beauty, probably from Greek descent or something.
“So, what shall it be, boys?” Andreas, probably in his late twenties to early thirties, is dressed in a dress shirt, one side black and the other white, and a pair of black khakis. The chess thing is either tonight’s theme or the theme of this place in general. Funny, because I hadn’t noticed a sign on our way in. In one hand he’s holding a small notebook, in the other a pen at the ready. He doesn’t speak with an accent, so I assume that he was born and raised in the States.
Jason feigns looking over the menu one last time, before answering. “I’ll have the Mega Double Burger Combo with extra fries.”
“What soda will that be?”
“Mountain Dew, please.”
The waiter scribbles Jason’s order in the notebook and turns to me. “For you?”
“Uhm, let’s see,” I say, while legitimately flipping through the pages of the menu, and settling on the Five Piece Chicken Strip Combo.
“Okay, cool,” the waiter quips. “Can I interest you in our appetizers? Today’s specials are breadsticks with or without cheese and cinnamon sticks.”
“Cinnamon sticks,” Jason and I instantly say in unison.
“Coming right up,” the waiter says. He repeats our order and winks at the both of us before walking in the direction of the kitchen. A few minutes later he’s back with a basket of cinnamon sticks, each about fifteen or twenty centimeters long and sprinkled with powdered sugar, and a tray with two tall glasses of ice cold water on top. He sets the basket down in the middle of the table after moving the candle aside and a glass of water in front of each of us. “There you go,” he says with a smile. “Usually the waiting period is about thirty to forty-five minutes, but I arranged for your orders to be done in twenty. Don’t want you two lovebirds to be waiting too long.” He winks at us again and disappears to tend to another table.
“He’s cool.” Jason takes a sip of his water.
“And hot,” I add. “He was totally checking us out, you know that, right?”
“I noticed, yeah, but a ménage á trois is not on the menu for tonight.” He winks at me suggestively.
“Wanna hop into the bathroom and skip to the good part?”
“Oh, baby, you poor sweet summer child, if you think that will be the good part of this evening, you are sadly mistaken.”
“So, you’re telling me there’s something better than your monster cock making me feel like a virgin all over again?”
“No spoilers.”
The waiter was more than true to his word, because nineteen minutes later he’s back, carrying a tray with our food on it. He sets the giant burger down in front of Jason and the chicken strips in front of me, followed by our drinks and another basket of cinnamon sticks. “On the house,” he says and winks at us yet again, while gathering our empty glasses and basket. “If there’s anything else, don’t hesitate to ask. Bon appetit!” And he’s gone again.
“Yeah, he definitely wants to fucks us,” I giggle in a low whisper.
“Of course he does,” Jason whispers back. “Have you seen us? We’re fucking sexy.”
“Indeed, we are.” I take my glass, raising it, and say, “To us.”
Jason smiles, takes his own glass and clinks it against mine. “To us.”
The rest of the night goes very smoothly. Even though we’ve been living together for almost half our lives, it still seems like this is the first time we’ve met and are just now getting to know each other, which is true in its own way. We just talk and talk non-stop, only pausing to take a bite out of our food or gulping down a sip of our drinks. When the food is all gone, Andreas appears as if by magic to offer us dessert. The specials of the day being: ice cream sundae, cheesecake served with cream or ice cream, and pancakes served with cream or ice cream.
“I’ll take the ice cream sundae,” Jason says and to my surprise I see him wink at Andreas.
I’m stunned at first, but then a smile creeps up my face. “I’ll have the cheesecake, please.”
“Coming right up,” Andreas says with a bright smile and vanishes again.
“You slut,” I laugh in a low whisper, leaning over the table.
“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” Jason says, shrugging and folding his arms over his chest.
“You know maybe we should take him for a ride,” I say suggestively.
Jason smiles mischievously. “Maybe we should.”
Andreas returns in five or so minutes with our desserts which we eat in pleasant silence, surrounded by the calming buzz of tonight’s customers and enjoying each other’s company. Jason’s the first one to finish even though his portion was way bigger than mine, but that’s no surprise. Something tells me that there’s still a small overweight boy living inside of him that prevents him from ever getting fat again no matter how much junk food he consumes. I finish the last of my cheesecake and let out a content sigh.
“Oh my God,” I gasp, “I am stuffed!”
“Oh, but the night’s not over yet,” Jason announces.
“Jason, this night has been amazing. What more can you do to make it even better?”
“No spoilers,” he says and winks at me as he stands up and walks over to the bar. He has a short exchange with the bartender and the man nods. A few moments later I see Andreas placing a mic stand on the lowest of the steps leading to the bar, the one that is colored green, and attaching a microphone. Jason then steps up to the mic and is bathed in a bright stream of light. He starts speaking: “Good evening, ladies and gentleman.”
“Whoo, Jason!” somebody whoops.
“Calm down, Hank,” Jason chuckles, “sadly, this is not an E$M gig.”
“Ah, boo!” the guy name Hank boos jokingly.
“Tonight is a very special night and I would like to perform a song for this very special person.” He motions to the bartender and suddenly the huge blank space across from the bar lights up. I follow the stream of light and find out that the mechanism above the bar is actually a projector. But of course, this is a karaoke bar/restaurant! “Alright, Jerry, let’s go for The Ballad of You and I, shall we?”
“Got it, Jason,” the bartender grunts.
What the hell is going on here? Does everyone in this place know Jason? From what I can gather, he and Jeff have played here regularly in the past as Electronic Sex Machine. That’s the only explanation that makes sense.
“I dedicate this song to all the lovers in here tonight. Not you, Hank, I know you’re still miserably single.” Jason’s joke is received by scattered laughter.
“Forever alone, baby!” Hank whoops, which causes another bout of laughter.
“You know I love you, man,” Jason chuckles.
“I love you too, Jason!” Hank shouts to which the crowd responds with an “Awwwww.”
This is very amusing. One might think that Jason is a professional performer with the way he carries himself and how he’s so calm and confident, making everyone in the crowd feel at ease. It’s kind of hot, to be honest. My eyes drift back to the blank space which now has the words “The Ballad of You and I” originally performed by Electronic $ex Machine projected onto it. Holy shit, is Jason going to perform an original E$M tune?!
The first words of the song appear on the screen and Jason’s sultry voice echoes throughout the area via speakers placed all around the room. Like all E$M songs it’s heavily influenced by synths and elements of rock, which is in my opinion a very nice combination. I lose myself in the song and Jason’s vocals, which is only intensified by him looking at me and never breaking eye contact. And that’s when I know. This song is for me. Not for Hank. Not for Jerry. Not for Amy fucking Dawson. For me.
A blush creeps up my face and the butterflies in my stomach go crazy and make me feel all fuzzy inside. I knew Jason’s love for me was real, but now… Now it seems more than real. Almost too real. Suddenly I feel a warmth streaking down my cheeks. Tears. Why the fuck am I crying? Damn you, Jason Westman! How dare you be so beautiful? So perfect? So damn fucking sexy?! I wipe the tears away and I see that Jason has a smirk on his handsome face.
“And that, my love, is the ballad of you and I,” Jason sings and the song comes to an end, followed by an almost deafening applause. Jason makes several graceful bows, then hops off the makeshift stage to shouts of “I love you, Jason!” from, probably, Hank. He flops down in his chair looking flustered and a bit out of breath.
“So, what did you think?” he asks with a sheepish grin.
I’m at a loss for words. I legit don’t know what to say. I just sit there gaping at him like an idiot, my face probably as red as a beet. A few times I open my mouth to say something, but nothing comes out.
“Your silence speaks volumes,” Jason chuckles. “Let’s go.” And just like magic Andreas is at our table again with the bill served up on a silver-colored platter and Jason pays the man, tipping him generously. “Thank you for your service, Andreas.”
“Always a pleasure, Jason,” Andreas says with curt nod. “We hope you enjoyed your time here. Please, dine with us again soon.”
“We will,” Jason promises.
“Also…”
“Yeah?”
“Best of luck to you two,” Andreas says with a sad smile. He bows slightly and disappears.
“Let’s get out of here.” Jason holds out his hand to me and I take it. And so we leave the nameless chess themed bar/restaurant through the colorfully illuminated hallway. The fresh air outside is welcomed by my lungs and I take a deep breath. “You ready for the final act?” Jason asks.
I smile up at him and slip my arms around his waist. “You know I am.”
“Cool.”
“Jason?”
“Yeah?”
“I love you.”
“I love you, too, Elijah.
And we kiss.
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