Date: Tue, 21 Nov 2006 18:08:45 -0800
From: Teh Genius <stories@tehgenius.com>
Subject: Another Rainy Monday Finale

Legal Note From The Sarcasm Department

Do not read this story if:

You are not over 18 years old (or the legal age where you live).
Reading this story will land you in jail (unless you're into that type of
thing).
You don't want to read about men touching other men in somewhat
inappropriate places.
You are prone to masturbatory spraining.

This story is completely fictional.  It is not meant to represent or
reproduce any person or situation. If this seems to mirror your life in any
way, you're a lucky bastard.

Enjoy!


Les Filles Balancent
====================

	My hands were shaking as I reached up to knock on Terryn's front
door.  Would I really be able to handle sleeping next to him all night
without getting playful?  I knew that Terryn didn't have any idea of the
significance of his suggestion of a "no hanky- panky" night together, and I
was honestly surprised that I wasn't the one to bring it up.

	One of my deepest relationship fantasies, one that I had never
shared with anyone, was to spend my first night with someone without having
sex of any kind.  It was a trivial feat to achieve later on in a
relationship, as there were always nights where sex just wasn't on the menu
for whatever reason, but to me the first night was always something
special.  I knew that to most people my views seemed somewhat quaint, given
the "norms" of internet dating, sleazy bar hook ups and roadie grope-fests,
but the romantic in me refused to give them up.  The fact that he had
suggested chastity was the only reason that I had eventually agreed to
spend the night.  If he had been just some random guy that I wanted to hook
up with, spending the night wouldn't have even been a question.  Terryn,
though... Terryn was different.

	I sucked in a deep breath and held it while I waited for Terryn to
answer the door.  With a little willpower, a little restraint and a lot of
luck it seemed as though I would finally get my wish.  I exhaled in a
surprised woosh as I saw the door peek open.

	"What the...?  What are you doing here?"

	As I tried to imagine why she was there, Sarah walked out of
Terryn's house and gave me a hug.  She shut the door quickly behind her,
squeezed me tightly and then looked up into my eyes.

	"He needs you, Erik..."

	Her voice was quiet, as if she was trying to keep Terryn from
overhearing our conversation.  Though I was still confused, I kept my voice
as quiet as hers was.

	"Ooooh... my unintentional little spy has been busy, I see!"

	She continued to hold my gaze, not reacting at all to my smile or
the joke, and I saw that her expression was quite serious.  She buried her
face in my chest and mumbled something.  If she had been talking about
anything else, I doubt I would have understood what she had said.

	"No, I think he needs you like I did..."

	My shoulders tightened at the thought.  I could feel my fingers
clench into fists against my will as I recounted the heartache that Sarah
had gone through.  If she hadn't still been holding on to me, I don't know
what I would have done.  Thankfully, Sarah seized the opportunity to tickle
my ribs which temporarily deflated my ire.  I managed to control my
laughter long enough to reach down, grab her waist and fling her over my
shoulder.  She reacted just as expected and thrashed around to escape my
grasp, all the while trying to regain her position of superiority.  I was
having none of that, and began to spin around in circles.  Sarah's giggles
quickly turned to gasps of "Uncle! UNCLE!" as I started to spin faster.
Though I was heavily ticklish, Sarah had always been prone to motion
sickness, and I learned quickly the best ways to exploit that weakness.  I
finally set her down and couldn't help but laugh at her queasy expression.
In return, she slugged me in the arm and I bit back a curse.

	"That was just mean, asshole!"

	"Hey, you're the one who started it!"

	It was time for another stare down.  I was determined to rack up my
second victory of the week, since this was clearly her fault, and my
patience was rewarded with a loud harrumph and another smack on the arm.

	"Whatever, jerk ass, I'm out of here."

	"Wait, Sarah... how bad is it?"

	She came up and gave me a peck on the cheek.

	"I think you guys will be fine.  Just... be careful, OK?"

	I felt relieved as some of the tension drained out of my body.  I
had been really worried that I was going to have some major repair work to
do, but if Sarah wasn't that worried about it then I had to trust her
judgment.  I gave her a playful swat on the butt as she walked off and then
turned to enter the house.


World Sequence ==============

        I sat curled in my favorite spot on the couch, pretending to read
some more of my book.  No words actually entered my eyes, as I was just
staring at the crease of the pages and pondering the newfound intricacies
of my life.  After all that Sarah and I had talked about, I wondered if she
was out there warning him to stay away from a nutcase like me.  As if my
thoughts were a direct line to Erik, I heard the door open and he came
bounding into my apartment like a little kid.  I winced as the door slammed
shut and put my book away.  Erik hiked his butt over the end of the couch
and laid himself across it, resting his head on my lap.  He had an enormous
grin on his face and his eyes were positively sparkling.  At that moment,
Erik just radiated an intense combination of innocence and enthusiasm that
drove my melancholy mood away in a heartbeat.  I raked my fingers through
his hair and smiled down at him.  He sniffed loudly and laughed.

        "You are SUCH a cheater!  I can't believe that you abused my poor,
darling Sarah to find out the only thing that could put such a shit-eating
grin on my face!"

        "You know, I never really understood that phrase... what's so
wonderful about eating shit?"

        He pinched my arm gently.  I was quickly learning that it drove him
crazy when I refused to take some verbal bait.

        "Well fine then! If you're going to be like that, then I'll just
sit here and skulk!"

        He furrowed his brow, stuck out his lower lip and crossed his arms
over his chest.  Always a sucker for incredibly cute temper tantrums, I
sighed melodramatically and waved a hand in the air.

        "OK, OK, I'll admit it.  I lured Sarah here in an attempt to seduce
your stomach."

        He drew lazy circles around my belly button as he talked, which
made it very hard to concentrate.  "Well, if you're trying to seduce me, I
guess the stomach is as good a place as any to start."

        I ran my hand gently over his chest and then slid down toward his
belly.

        "Just tell me when to stop..."

        He turned his head slightly and poked me in the stomach.

        "OK, what gives?"

        "Huh?"

        "You have this weird look in your eyes.  You're here, but you're
not 'here' here, you know?"

        I sighed, for real this time.  It was hard enough trying to
crystallize what I was thinking about, but it was ten times harder to put
into words.

        "I don't know.  I'm not even sure if I really know what's wrong."

        Erik turned upright on the couch and wrapped his arm around my
shoulder.  He kissed the top of my head and hugged me to his chest.

        "I know you haven't known me long, but one thing I'm great at is
listening.  If you want to talk about it, I'd be more than happy to hear
you out.  If not, I'm fine with just sitting here and making out with you,
OK?  In fact, I'm ready to make out at any time."

        He then proceeded to make loud kissing noises above the top of my
head.  With that simple gesture, my comfort level with Erik skyrocketed.
Somehow he seemed to always know exactly what to say without being
patronizing while balancing it with some levity.  Sitting on the couch,
wrapped in his arms and soothed by the sound of his voice, I suddenly felt
that he might be the real deal after all.

        "You sure you want to hear me whine about how screwed up my psyche
is?"

        "Oh, come on... I'm sure it's not that bad."

        "OK, you asked for it."

        I leaned up and kissed him gently and tried to figure out where to
begin.

        "I guess I'll start with this morning.  I woke up really early this
morning, and somehow everything felt right in the world.  Even though I was
alone, it didn't feel as...  lonely as usual, I guess.  Normally I feel
like shit in the morning, but this morning was different.  Since I didn't
really have anything to do, I puttered around the house a bit and then went
back to bed."

        My hands were trembling as I continued to relive the feelings of
the morning.

        "When I woke up again, though, it was to a feeling of utter terror.
No one was in bed with me... no one was there to say 'good morning'... no
one was there.  It felt like last night was all a pleasant dream and that I
was waking up to a depressing reality.  While I knew rationally that it
wasn't just a dream, my mind started going crazy.  I spent all morning
imagining that I'd never see you again.  All of the self-doubt that I
thought that I had dealt with a long time ago came bubbling up to the
surface.  I didn't really let on when you were here earlier, but it was
still there in the back of my mind."

        I stopped to take a deep breath and squirmed even further into his
chest.  Somehow talking to him was putting my jumbled thoughts into
perspective without my bidding, and the words just kept tumbling out.

        "Normally I'm a pretty well adjusted guy.  Hell, compared to Jeff I
was a poster child for self esteem and motivational speeches.  Since I met
you, though, things have suddenly changed.  Jeff's now the voice of reason
and I'm the blubbering mess.  Oh!  I'll have to introduce you guys... I
think you guys would like each other."

        "All in due time, Terryn."

        Erik paused and urged me to continue my story.  I really didn't
want to go on, afraid of what he might think, but I had to get to let him
know how I was feeling.  I was quiet for a few moments, and Erik didn't say
anything.  He just sat there, rubbing my back and waiting patiently for me
to continue.

        "OK, this is the tough part.  When I was younger, I was pretty fat.
I never was grotesquely obese or anything, but I always had a terrible self
image.  About a year and a half ago, I broke down and started losing weight
through a complicated regimen of self- loathing, punishing exercise and a
very strict diet.  When I finally hit my goal weight, it still wasn't
enough.  When I looked into the mirror I still saw the old, fat me hiding
in a body in good shape.  After a lot of soul searching, I realized that I
had lost the weight for the wrong reasons.  I wasn't worried about my
health... all I was worried about was how I looked to other people."

        Erik rested his cheek on the top of my head and very slowly ran his
hand up and down my side.  I couldn't believe that he was being so
incredibly patient and caring with me.  Given my track record with guys, I
had figured that he would have bolted out of the door already.  With a
renewed sense of purpose, I pushed on.

        "Instead of being fat and miserable, I was skinny and miserable.
The instant any guy took an interest in me, all I could think about was
whether he liked me because I looked good or because he was actually
interested in me.  I fucked a couple people, and I played at dating some,
but few of them ever made it past a superficial thing.  Eventually I swore
off dating entirely, and slowly came to terms with myself.  Being alone
kept me safe and sane, and my life was finally happy.  Or so I thought."

        I felt a slight blush rise to my cheeks as I recalled seeing Erik
in the coffee shop.

        "When I first saw you at work, standing there looking so amazing,
it felt like all of the air had been sucked out of the room.  I couldn't
think, I couldn't talk... all I could do was stare at you and mumble
incoherently.  You were the first man in years that had that effect on me,
and I freaked out.  If it had just been a physical thing I could have dealt
with that, but everything you did hit me emotionally.  Every move, every
gesture... it was poetry.  I've never been one for picking fight over
flight, so I just ran away."

        My breath was hitching in my chest as I talked, but I couldn't have
stopped even if I had wanted to.  Erik's eyes shone with tears, and he laid
his head on my chest.  During whole time I had been talking, he had
steadily been pulling me closer, as if he could somehow just touch the
anguish away.

        "When Angie called you 'daddy'... that felt like the worst moment
of my life."

        It was then that I felt a tear drop from his cheek to my head, and
it made my heart ache.  He shouldn't be the one crying, since he didn't do
anything wrong.

        "When I started to panic this morning, all I could do was to ask
myself over and over whether or not you would still like me if I was fat.
I know that it's stupid, and that it's not fair to you at all, but I keep
turning that over in my head and I don't know how to let go of it.  Sarah
tried to help earlier, but I really don't know if I'll ever be able to let
it go."

        Erik gently pulled me up to face him and put his hands on either
side of my face.  He quickly wiped away the tears that were rolling down
his cheeks with the back of his hand and then kissed me tenderly.

        "I think I might actually be of some help in that department.  What
if I told you that I had kept a secret from you... would you be mad at me?"

        I wasn't sure what that had to do with anything I had just said,
but I decided to go along with it.

        "Unless you tell me that you're really a serial killer, then
probably not."

        Erik just laughed gently and grabbed my hand, pulling me off the
couch.  He guided me down to the rug on the floor and stretched out on his
side with his head propped up on his arm.  He patted the rug next to him
with his free hand and I joined him on the floor.  Rather than lying on my
side, I stretched out on my back and stared at the ceiling.  Once I was
settled, he leaned gently on top of me and entangled his leg in mine.  He
turned my head to face him, and kissed me again.

        "I can tell you without reservation that the answer to that
question is an emphatic 'yes'."

        I frowned, thinking that he was just humoring me.  Before I had a
chance to say anything, he put a finger on my lips and smiled.

        "Now it's my turn to talk.  The reason that I can say that is
because it's based on fact.  What I should have told you before was that I
have been waiting for three years to hold you like this."

        I must have looked as shocked as I felt because he laughed again
and splayed his hand over my heart.

        "I don't think you ever so much as noticed me once the whole time
we worked at Inner River.  I guess us customer service folk were far too
inferior for you high and mighty tech support guys to talk to, but I saw
you nonetheless.  I kept trying to work up the nerve to talk to you, but
you always walked around like you had somewhere more important to be.  All
I knew was that I thought that you had incredibly beautiful hair and a very
sexy voice.  One day I walked around sporting a hard on all day because you
walked me through changing printers over the phone!"

        I wracked my brain trying to figure out how I had managed to be in
such close proximity to a gorgeous man like Erik without ever noticing.

        "I guess when you're taking care of 3 buildings full of people you
don't really have time to notice the scenery much, do you?"

        "I was busy, but I still can't figure out how I would have missed
someone as hot- tastic as you!"

        Erik grinned and blushed a little bit at that comment.

        "I guess you're not the only one that has changed.  Try to imagine
me with braces, scowling all the time and with a hooded sweatshirt pulled
up over my head."

        I wracked my brain again, and suddenly the image clicked.  My eyes
widened.

        "Oh dear god!  You were the weird angry guy!  We all thought that
you were going to show up one day with a bomb and blow the whole place up!"

        Erik arched an eyebrow.

        "And who exactly is 'we all'?"

        I chuckled and playfully swatted his arm.

        "All of the techs used to talk shit about everyone else in the
building.  It was our way of passing the time.  To be fair, though, you
never gave us any really good stories since you weren't an idiot.  Some of
your coworkers, though..."

        "Ugghh!  Don't even get me started on them.  I actually felt bad
for you guys that you had to deal with some of them.  Believe me, it was 10
times worse when you had to talk to them on a daily basis."

        Erik shuddered at the memories of co-workers past and then suddenly
grew serious again.  His voice was quiet as he continued.

        "I used to lie awake at night wondering what it would be like to
talk to you on a daily basis.  After a while, I started dreaming about what
it would be like to hear that sexy voice waking me up in the morning or
calling me just to say hi.  I wasn't even sure if you were gay, but I
thought about you all the same."

        "Well, one day when I came to work you were gone.  You never showed
up again and I figured that that would be the last I'd ever see of you.
Imagine my surprise when you came stomping into my store the other day!
When I realized that you had no idea who I was, I was kind of disappointed,
but mostly I was just glad to see you again.  When Tony found your
I.D. behind the counter later, I figured that it was a glaring sign that I
should finally work up the nerve to at least try to do something to keep
you around."

        As touching as his story was, a little bit of doubt still nagged at
me.

	"I don't get it, though.  You're hot, you're a great musician, and
I'm sure you have guys throwing themselves at you all of the time.  Why in
the world would you even remember me?"

	Erik's brow furrowed and his voice had an edge to it.

	"You really don't get it, do you?  I remembered you because I like
you.  I liked you then, I like you now, and nothing's going to change that.
You keep saying that I'm hot, but you are one of the most beautiful men
that I have ever met.  Sure, that might be a little biased, but it's what I
think.  I've had a crush on you for 3 years, and I'm damned sure not going
to let it get screwed up because you don't believe it."

	With that, he swooped in to give me an amazing display of his
kissing prowess.  The kiss was so powerful and so full of unspoken desire
that it almost had the power to make me a true believer in the Church of
Erik.  It would have been a flawless success if his stomach hadn't growled
loudly as we kissed.

	I couldn't help myself and broke down in a fit of laughter.  Erik
quickly joined me in laughing and rolled back onto his back, which served
to elicit another growl.  As soon as I was able to calm myself a little bit
I sat up and leaned back with my hands at my sides.

	"Wow..."

	"Hmm?"

	I turned to look at what Erik was marveling at and saw his gaze
traveling up and down my body.  I felt my face heat a bit as I returned the
appraisal.  His hands were resting on his stomach, and his T-shirt had
ridden up on his belly.  I couldn't help but stare at the exposed patch of
fur that dove under the elastic band of his underwear.  I was staring so
intently at his midsection that I no longer cared what he was looking at,
but my mouth went dry as he casually began to rub his stomach.  I had to
tear my gaze away for fear that I might just assault him right where he was
lying.

	Sensing that a change of scenery was in order, I jumped up to my
feet and held my hand out to Erik.  He looked briefly surprised, then
grabbed my hand and levered himself to his feet.  He continued to hold my
hand as we stood toe to toe, and I led him to the kitchen after a brief
kiss.  I fairly pushed him into one of the kitchen table chairs and set
about getting dinner on the table.  I laughed to myself as I took the lid
off of the pot that sat heating on the stove.

	"What's so funny, Terr?"

	As usual, his voice sent a pleasant shiver down my spine.

	"How do you do that?  I normally despise people shortening my name,
but you make it sound damned sexy."

	"Well, that's because I'm just damned sexy!  I'd turn it off, but I
don't know any other way to be."

	He thrust his hips into the air several times, and grinned lewdly.
I smacked his knee lightly with the wooden spoon that I held in my hand.

	"I was laughing at your version of haute cuisine.  And you had
better settle down so that I can finish cooking this."

	Erik, of course, would have none of that.  As I turned back to the
pot, the scraping sound of the chair leg was the only warning that I had
before I was surrounded by hot, furry man flesh.  Erik wrapped his arms
around my waist and nuzzled my neck, making it impossible to concentrate on
the task at hand.  I groaned and pushed back against him, dropping the
spoon to the counter.

	"Is that behaved enough for you?"

	He tried to sound sultry, but his uneven breathing gave away his
investment in his little game.  I ground my ass into his crotch and was
rewarded with a shudder and a little nip at my neck.

	"I don't know if that's enough, but I'll just have to make due with
what I can get."

	"That was a low blow, Terr..."

	I turned to face him and kissed away his pouty frown.

	"There will be plenty of time for smooching later, so sit your cute
ass back down so we can eat!"

	He whined like a 3 year old.

	"Do I haaaaave tooooooooo?"

	I snatched the spoon up off of the counter and pointed it at him.

	"Yes you do, young man!  After all of the trouble that I went to
make your favorite meal, you do not get to give me any grief!"

	He stuck his tongue out at me and licked his lips.

	"I guess I'll just have to wait for dessert, then."

	He turned to the refrigerator as I started piling food on the
plates.  He let out a sharp whistle as he saw the vastly improved state of
the fridge.

	"My, my Terr... you were certainly busy today."

	"Well, a little birdie kept pointing out things that I just HAD to
have in the house at all times, and she really wouldn't take no for an
answer.  Suffice to say, Safeway got a healthy chunk of cash out of me
today."

	"Awww, Terr... you really didn't have to do all of that.  Remind me
to yell at a certain someone next time I see her..."

	I laughed and set the plates down on the table as he grabbed us
each a beer out of the fridge.

	"It wasn't really her fault, Erik.  I really was overdue to restock
the pantries, so there were only a few things that weren't already on my
list."

	Erik opened the beers and set them down at the table before walking
to where I stood and planting another great big smacker on my lips.

	"Well, I appreciate it.  I don't eat at home much, so a nice home
cooked meal like this every once in a while is always in order.  Now let's
eat, I'm starving!"

	We sat down at the table, and Erik lifted his beer to propose a
toast.

	"To us and to our neuroses!"

	"Hear, hear!"

	The clink of the bottles signified the end of the time to talk and
the beginning of the time to eat.  It was a good time, indeed.


Ai No Tsurugi =============

	Once the table had been cleared and the dishes had been washed,
Terryn and I took our remaining beers and moved back to the couch.  Terryn
was just about to take a seat next to me when I placed my hand over his.

	"Do me a favor, Terr?"

	He looked slightly confused as he looked down at me.

	"Could you ditch the thong?"

	He chuckled softly before reaching up to undo the ever present
leather thong restraining his hair.  I could have watched his hair tumble
out of its captivity all day long.  As I studied his graceful movements, my
heart felt heavy at the thought of all of the doubt in his mind that seemed
to me to be completely unfounded.  I had always been attractive to a lot of
folks, and I used that to my advantage on rare occasions, but I had never
had to deal with the significant changes that Terryn had gone through.  It
was not long after I first talked to Terryn that I found myself falling for
him, and I had always thought that he was gorgeous.  Knowing that he didn't
believe it was painful beyond measure.  I resolved then and there to do
everything that I could to prove to him that I was sincere in my desire for
him.

	My breath caught in my throat as he ran his hands through his hair
and then tossed his head.  With the exception of a handful of dirty
hardcore rockers, I didn't really have a chance to meet many guys with hair
as long as his.  Part of it trailed down past his ears and hung over his
shoulders while the rest settled behind him.  The overhead light made his
blond locks shimmer with every movement, and it made me appreciate the way
that his hair framed his face.

	I patted the couch cushion between my legs, but he just gave me a
mischievous grin.

	"Uh uh... not until I get something out of this bargain."

	"Oh, and just what would that be?"

	I had to say it, even though I already knew what he wanted.  He
pointed at my chest in exasperation and frowned.

	"The shirt, of course!  If you get to play with hair then so do I!"

	I laughed and had a moment of hesitation.  If my shirt came off,
then his was probably next, and who knew where that would lead.  I chased
away the hesitation with the rationalization that we were both adults who
in theory should hold some modicum of self-restraint.  I pulled my T-shirt
over my head and tossed it to the side.  I frowned as I looked down at my
torso.  I had never been a gym rat, but I swore to myself that there had
been some better definition in my muscles at some point in the recent past.
Oh well, there would always be time to hit the gym later.

	Terryn knelt between my legs and leaned in for a kiss.  He ran his
fingers up through the fur on my chest, all the way from my stomach to my
pecs and then pressed his lips to mine.  As we broke off the kiss, Terryn
started to giggle.

	"You taste like Manwiches and beer!"

	"Hey!  You made dinner, so you can't complain about what I taste
like!"

	He licked his lips and then rested his head on my chest.  I
threaded my fingers through his hair and lightly stroked his scalp.  The
light scent of his shampoo wafted up to my nose and I inhaled deeply.
Terryn rubbed his head against me and began to talk directly to my right
nipple.

	"OK, you have to tell me the story behind the sloppy joes.  Sarah
wouldn't give me any more info besides 'he'll like it, trust me'."

	I sighed as I recounted the time that had started the obsession.

	"Well, Sarah was definitely right.  Manwiches are probably the one
thing that I could eat all day, every day and be happy."

	"Wow, she had your addiction down to a T!  That's pretty much word
for word what she said."

	"I have known the girl for an inordinately long time, so she'd
better.  In case you care, her favorite food is probably the weirdest thing
in the world.  She makes a grilled cheese sandwich with Wonder bread and
Kraft singles and then dips it in nacho cheese.  It's absolutely repulsive,
but she makes it all of the time.  The funniest part is that she's lactose
intolerant, so grilled cheese night NEVER ends well."

	Terryn laughed and then turned around to face away from me.  He
leaned his head back in my lap, which gave me unfettered access to his
hair.

	"As for my sloppy joes?  That whole thing started right after my
dad left.  The bastard never really paid child support, so my mom was
trying to raise Joss and I on her shitty little salary.  We never went
hungry or anything, but we did find some creative ways to save money.  My
mom was always on the hunt for cheap food that we would eat, and one day
she made Manwiches.  Joss and I ate them up like there was no tomorrow, so
she started making them more often.  At one point, we were up to three
times a week and would complain that she wouldn't make them more often!
Once she landed a new job at the company she works at now we were able to
eat 'better' food, but it became a once- weekly ritual for us to make
sloppy joes and eat together as a family.  Eventually, she and Joss got
tired of them but I never did.  I used to drag Sarah over to the house to
eat them with me since it was such a pain in the ass to make for one
person."

	Terryn had leaned back so that he was looking up at me, and he made
a disturbingly cute kissy face.  I leaned down and gave him a kiss.  While
he was distracted with the kiss, I reached down and grabbed the bottom of
his shirt, and pulled my head away from his as the T-shirt went up.  He
instinctively reached his arms up to give me access, but I caught his hands
with one of mine and reached down for an attack.  He squirmed out of the
shirt quickly, but I got in enough tickling to leave him at a disadvantage.
He immediately gave in and moaned as I grabbed one of his nipple studs.  I
dropped my hands away and tried to compose my thoughts a bit.

	"I'm sorry... I got a little carried away there."

	Both of us were out of breath from the tussling, and we each
squirmed as we tried to get our hard-ons under control.

	"It's OK, Erik... I should have warned you about that."

	Terryn turned to face me and smiled.

	"My left nipple is super crazy sensitive... it has been since I was
like 12."

	"Just the left one?"

	"Yep.  The other one isn't sensitive at all... I think it got
fucked up when I got it pierced."

	"Oh wow... that sucks."

	I groaned inwardly at my lame attempt at comforting words.  Terryn
just took it in stride and shook his head.

	"Nahh, it's not that bad.  It's almost as if all of the sensation
for both of them got merged into one super nipple.  Sometimes I can get
myself off just by playing with it!"

	I growled as he said that.  I had just about gotten things under
control when he said that, but the mental image of that was too much to
handle.

	"Oh fuck, Erik... you are never allowed to growl like that again!"

	Terryn was breathing even more loudly than before, and he leaned
away from me.  I could plainly see his cock pushing his jeans outward,
throbbing with his heart beat.  Once I realized what he meant, I growled
once more just to be evil.  The response was amazing.  I could see the
shiver run through Terryn's chest and out of the corner of my eye I could
see his hands clenching fistfuls of carpet.  His teeth were clenched as he
fought to say what was on his mind.

	"Dude... you have to stop that.  I'm not fucking kidding!"

	Though all of my instincts wanted me to push Terryn's uncomfortable
situation as far as I could take it, my better nature forced me to lie down
across the couch and stare at the ceiling.

	"Maybe this wasn't such a great idea, Terr..."

	As soon as the words had crossed my lips, I realized that they
could be misinterpreted.  Luckily for me, it seemed as if Terryn had gotten
my drift.

	"It's my fault, Erik.  I was the one that laid down the rule, so I
shouldn't have started all of this."

	I turned to the side and saw a conflicted look on his face.  I
tumbled off of the couch and crawled over to his side.

	"Terryn, I'm just as at fault here.  It's just that
I... you... GAHH!"

	Words were utterly failing me.  There were so many things that I
wanted to say, but the sentences wouldn't form properly.  I slammed my
hands on the carpet in frustration and hung my head in defeat.  Terryn
placed his hands over mine and sat upright.

	"Look, Erik, I'll make you a deal.  It's getting late, and you have
to be up early tomorrow.  Why don't you take the spare bathroom and get
ready for bed?  I'll head into mine and then we'll get some sleep."

	The inflection in Terryn's voice made abundantly clear what he
meant by "get ready for bed".  I guess I could have considered it cheating
on the promise, but in the state that we were both in there was no way that
either one of us would get any decent rest.  Both of us were in the
bathroom for less than 10 minutes.

	Once I was ready for bed, I headed to Terryn's bedroom.  As I hit
the door, Terryn strode out of the bathroom in just a tight pair of black
boxer briefs.  I gave him a low wolf whistle, which was rewarded by a head
to toe flush.  Once Terryn was seated on his side of the bed, I walked to
the other side and hesitated for a moment.  At home I usually slept in the
nude, but there was no way that I was going to do that with Terryn in the
bed.  The pair of boxer shorts that I had brought with me wouldn't provide
much more control, but they would have to do.  With that thought, I shucked
the pair of board shorts that I had on and climbed under the covers.  I
thought that I had made it under without Terryn noticing, but the giggle
that issued forth proved otherwise.

	"Please tell me that I'm not seeing things..."

	"No, you're not.  I only had one clean pair left."

	Terryn turned toward me and tried to pull down the covers.  I
grabbed frantically at the top of the comforter, trying to keep the covers
placed firmly over me.

	"Seriously?  Care Bears?"

	"HEY!  It's not 'Care Bears'... it's just one bear in particular."

	I was just about to launch into my usual tirade explaining my love
of all things Good Luck Bear when we had a simultaneous revelation.  I
suddenly realized that I had never told him about the Valentine's Day card
and it looked like he realized where it had come from.  I froze, wondering
what his reaction would be.

	"No way..."

	I was quickly attacked by the most ferocious kiss-monster that I
had ever encountered.  At some point, I swore that Terryn had grown an
extra pair of arms and three extra mouths as it seemed that he was hugging
and kissing every part of me simultaneously.  The kisses were in stark
opposition to the groping that had come earlier and were wonderfully
tender.  I breathed a sigh of relief as Terryn raised above me, hair
raining down around my head.

	"That's a three-years-overdue thank you."

	"You're quite welcome.  I wish I had known then what I know
now... I might have actually signed the card!"

	We both grinned and Terryn rolled back over to his side of the bed.
I propped my head up on my elbow and traced little circles over his chest.
I made extra sure to avoid his nipple, not wanting a repeat of his earlier
freak out.  Terryn mirrored my pose and looked at me.

	"So, Erik... any weird sleep things I should know about?  Snoring?
Talking?  Really bad morning breath?  Sleep raping?"

	"Sleep raping?!  I didn't even know that that was an established
condition!"

	I poked the tip of his nose and grinned.

	"Don't worry... as far as I know I don't have any of those.  At
least no one has ever complained about them before."

	"Good.  I won't have to kick you out of bed, then."

	Terryn reached over and turned off his bedside lamp.  He turned
back to me and we kissed for a long while.

	"Good night, Erik."

	"Good night, Terryn."

	As I expected, he faced me and buried his face in my chest.  I
wrapped my right arm around him and held him close as he fell asleep.  Even
though I had to be up well before him, sleep didn't come to me right away.
I couldn't shake the feeling that I didn't deserve to share a bed with such
a wonderfully loving man.  As I finally drifted off to sleep, I resolved to
let all of my doubts go and just enjoy the fact that I was there with him.
Lying there, Terryn wrapped securely in my arms, I smiled and let the
sandman take me.  Our breathing rhythms intertwined as I slid into slumber.

        It had been the most wonderful night that I could remember.


=================== Author's Note - Arc 1 Finale ===================

Thus ends the first portion of this story.  It's been a wild ride behind
the scenes, so it's very fulfilling to reach this point relatively
unscathed.  A massive thank you goes out to everyone that has contributed
to this story, either in personality or in criticisms.  The story just
wouldn't be the same without you guys.

Arc 2 will be titled "Two's Day" (whether anyone likes it or not ^_^) and
should appear in this same folder on about the same schedule.  I will also
likely be setting up a Yahoo group or other mailing list to notify those
who wish to know when new chapters will be posted.  Any information that I
have will show up in the author's notes for Two's Day.

This story is dedicated to the perfect man in an imperfect situation.  It's
time to say goodbye, but you'll always be in my heart.

Copyright 2006 by TehGenius. Comments and constructive criticism welcome at
stories@tehgenius.com.