Date: Thu, 17 Apr 2003 14:25:01 +0100 (BST) From: Philippe Invictus Subject: THE PAD: Chapter I This is a work of fiction. It will eventually contain sexual acts between men. If gay sex is illegal in your area, or you are a minor, or you just don't like queer sex (what are you doing in this site to begin with?) then read no more. Comments, questions, and ideas are more than welcome and would be truly appreciated. Please put 'Nifty' in the subject line and send it to nifty_pad@yahoo.com. And since this is my first attempt at writing, please be kind. Thanks. Wow. The pad was just like what I had imagined. I had talked with the interior decorator hours and hours on end and I have been here during its construction to make sure that things go well, but I had no idea it would be this wonderful. The well-lighted hallway opened up to the living room where my entertainment center was placed in one corner, flanked by these soft black leather seats. Everything is in synch with the minimalist theme I had seen in several magazines. It has three rooms, one is for me obviously, the one adjacent to my room would become the study room/library/computer center. The other room would be for my mom's best friend's son, Alex. I have heard of Alex ever since I can remember but I have only actually met him once, or maybe twice. That was a long time ago though, we were only kids by then, and now, I'd be living on my own. Shit! I still can't believe this. I can't even begin to put a price tag on this place. It's obvious that my mom didn't spare anything. I have all the equipments I'll ever need, or even know how to use. O my God. They even bought me a brand new laptop. Geez, I'm starting to feel giddy. I can't wait to try out all the new gadgets and appliances. It sure is great being the only child and having rich parents that will provide for everything. Yup, we're pretty well-off. My parents are into the automotive business, not the actual cars, but they manufacture and distribute the parts of the vehicles actually. If I'm not mistaken, we're the largest distributor and manufacturer of automotive parts in the country, so I pretty much get what I want in life. Just like this amazing pad! So even though my parents' house is also in the city, an hour's drive away from my school, actually, they still insisted on letting me experience independence. Okay, fine, I admit. My dad didn't like the idea initially, but I used all my "convincing" powers for them allow me to live on my own. I threatened, I cajoled, I sweet-talked, I begged and, I won. "I can't believe you got me everything. Geez, thanks Pa. Thanks Ma." "Of course we got you everything. How can we expect you to have decent grades if you have to worry about where you're gonna sleep at night?" said my Dad as his eyes twinkled in pride. I love the way my dad looks at me. It's like I'm the center of his universe. And most often than not, I feel that way. He has given me more than everything growing up. To quote him, I'm his pride and joy. I can't help but feel teary eyed as I hug them tight. This would be the first time that I'd be completely on my own. Well, sort of. If only I could think of a way to get rid of Alex before the second semester. I'm sure I'll come up of something. I mean, its not that I'm a complete spoiled brat, I just want to experience being completely alone. And living with someone - o God, does he still have those pimples?! - is not really what I had in mind. "I'll give you more than decent grades, promise. Ok, now you have to let me go mom." I whimpered as my mom hugged me tightly still. I swear, sometimes I think she wants to strangle me. "Don't worry Ma, I'll take care of myself. I'll call every night if you want. You don't have to worry. Besides, it's not as if I'm going to another country or something. You can always come and visit." "I'm not worried... Maybe just a little. Just don't forget to eat breakfast. Stop that dieting nonsense, you hear? And that is what I want, you call me every night. If you don't, we'll storm in here and drag your skinny ass back home." I can see tears streaming down her cheeks now. "And be nice to Alex. I'm sure you'll like each other." I know that despite her flaws, my mom loves me too. And I do love her. It's just that sometimes it gets too crowded at home, if you know what I mean. "Ok. Don't worry. Alex and I will get along really well. Now, you have to go before you miss your flight." My parents are spending their 25th anniversary/3rd honeymoon in Hawaii. I insisted that they take this much needed vacation despite their insistence that they wanna see me settled in first. After the usual parting rituals, they finally left! I am totally alone now! The fab wall clock says that it's already 9.30, that means I'll have a few hours before Alex arrives. I went into my bedroom and I can't help but admire the room. Everything was just the way I wanted it. I had a king sized bed, with a mattress that I myself had chosen not too soft, not too hard. The silk sheets were of navy blue color, with a black wall behind it. On it was a large picture of me, taken candidly from a play that I took part in. The dark wood paneling went well with everything. I even have a closet that I could almost walk in! I decided to lie down for a few minutes and try to savor my new freedom. Just as I was about to drift off, my cell rang. It's my Aunt Nikki, well she's not really my aunt. She's Alex's mom, my mom's best friend and someone that's been part of our family since I can remember. She just wanted me to know that Alex was on his way over, he'll be here earlier than planned. Darn, my day has already been spoiled. I wanted to spend a few moments of tranquility and now, her geek son is coming earlier. Last time I saw Alex, he was around 14 or 15 years old. We were having one of my mom's famous dinners and he was there. I couldn't help laughing out loud when I saw him with thick metal wires on his mouth. His lips protruded like he was sucking on a slice of orange. To make matters worse, his face was covered with red, pimples. It was a good thing that he wore thick glasses which covered a third of his face. We later learned that he was shipped to Europe or some other land for secondary school so I haven't really seen him since then. I learned that he was really good at computers or something. Boy, couldn't I get someone else as a roommate? Just then, I heard the waves of the ocean crashing into the entire place. That's my doorbell. Cool, huh? Guess its time to face my roomy and set the ground rules. Ha, let's see if he can stand - "Hi! You must be Lawrence. I'm Alex." My jaw was literally hanging open before I managed to shake his extended hand. "Uhm, come in. I'm Lawrence. But you already know that. You must be Alex. Hi Alex. Your mom just called to say that you were coming earlier than you were supposed to." Stop it Lawrence! You're babbling like a crazy fool! I managed to shut up and smile at him instead. God he's gorgeous. He looks like a god. His body is just perfect, as is his face. He IS perfect. I can't believe this! The geek Alex turned out to be a Greek fucking God. I can see his pecs move in his tight shirt as he lifts his bag. "Sorry for being early, my mom had to attend this meeting and the driver had to drop me off earlier instead." "O. that's no problem. No problem at all." I say, giving him my flirting look. O God no. Stop it Lawrence. You can't be flirting with him! It's too close to home. Shit. Why can't he just have been the geek I knew? Why does he have to be a God? How the hell am I supposed to get my hands off him, when all I wanna do is eat him? While he was settling in his room, I cooked some vegetarian pasta with carbonara sauce. It took me some time to decide what type of sauce to make, but I ended up with carbonara for it would look best on my black plates. Yup! My mom got me the black plates and fab utensils that I told her I preferred over the multi-colored ones she chose for our own house. All items in the pad followed the general feel of the entire place. Black, white, silver and dark blue. As Alex and I sat down, I couldn't help but just stare at him. "Hey, this carbonara is great! I didn't know you could cook too.," intoned Alex after tasting my meal. "Thanks, my mom taught me how to cook since I was young." I replied, still staring at him, searching his pretty face for any imperfection. I want something to focus on and convince myself that he ain't as great as he looks. Shit! He has the clearest skin in the world and his almond eyes are crystal clear! I feel like it could swallow me up any moment. and those lips. Dear God, those lips. "My mom back here wouldn't let me touch the pans but I had to learn to cook if I wanted to survive in Australia. I didn't have any maids or anything so I had to do everything on my own." "Australia? I thought you were in Europe." "I wish. But unfortunately, I spent the last three years in Australia, in the ranch that my grandpa bought before he died. My dad wouldn't let me stay in a dormitory so I lived outside the city. I raised chickens and all kinds of animals, until I called my mom and told her that I would run away if I had to but I couldn't stand the kangaroos any more. So here I am." "Kangaroos? Ei, that seems cool." "Not if you see them daily jumping up and down.," he said smiling, showing me his beautiful set of teeth. I didn't know how to respond, so I just smiled back at him, thinking that I would do everything in my power to have this perfect specimen of manhood. "Lawrence, uhm, listen. Before I forget, I just wanna thank you for letting me crash here. I know that you bought this place so you can be on your own. Don't worry, I promise not to be in your way. I'd be spending most of the time in my room, so you really don't have to worry about me." What?! Is he out of his mind? I want him in "my" room, not his. "Hey, don't worry about it. It's not really a problem. Besides, I owe this place to you. My dad wouldn't have agreed to this if you weren't here. So you're doing me the favor, not the other way around. Besides, I need someone to help me clean the place." Okay. I sort of, lied. We already bought the place before he came into the picture. But hey, it didn't hurt when my mom told my dad that Alex would be here. "O, sure, you can expect that. I'll even clean the house twice a day if you want me to. I mean, it's the least I can do. Besides, I'm used to it. Back in Aussie, I had a huge ranch all to myself. So I'm quite used to it." "I was just kidding Alex. I don't want Aunt Nikki to bite my head off! Listen, we'll both do all the household chores, k? We'll share everything equally. For starters, you get to wash tonight's plates, since I cooked," I said to him teasingly. ~~**~~ Days later, we finally settled into our individual routines. College life has taken a lot of our time and Alex seems to have adjusted fairly well both in school and with his new home. I had gotten to know him better and I must admit that, though his image still leaves me catching my breath sometimes, my initial infatuation for him is slowly waning. Well that's the thing with me, you see. The more I get to know and befriend someone, the less I tend to like them romantically. It's the classic celebrity infatuation syndrome. You like someone because you impose on them what and how you want them to be. They're not real people but objects of lust, etc. So Alex has been pulled down from that pedestal and brought to earth. Part of our routine is to go to the gym early in the morning together. He usually drags me off my bed and to the gym. After an hour or so of working out, we go to our individual classes. I'm taking business management while his taking journalism. We meet up for lunch in the school cafeteria where he helps me finish a paper that I was supposed to do the night before. Alex, you see, is totally opposite of me. He does everything he's supposed to, while I come up with the most astounding excuses. He takes sometime warming up to people while I just pry them out of their shells. I'm the performer, he's the audience. We're on the opposite ends of the spectrum which I guess is what makes us gel so well. He listens, I talk. He eats, I cook. Plus, he does the dishes, which I just abhor. And yes, I'm gay, he's straight. It was while we were watching my DVD of The Godfather that the inevitable happened. I was lying down on the sofa when the phone rang. He was about to answer it when I told him to tell whoever it was that I wasn't home. He hates when I ask him to do this, but he does it nonetheless. I was concentrating on the movie when I heard him repeat the caller's name and my heart dropped to the floor. "Michael?... Uhm, Lawrence's not here right now... He's. He's at the mall. I'll just tell him to call you back.. Ok. Yes. I'll make sure of that. Yes... Yes. I'll make sure that he calls you back. Thanks. Bye." I was looking at his face the entire time and I saw his expression change, he was clearly annoyed. "Uhm, what did he say?" "He said that you should stop avoiding him and call him, before he makes his move. What did he mean by that?" "I dunno. Uhm. Did he, uhm, say anything else?," I asked, feeling my heart just race a bit faster. "No, he didn't. He was just shouting threats at the phone. So Lawrence, why are avoiding him? What did you do?" "I'm not! I didn't know that it was him who called, I just didn't want to be disturbed. And besides, I didn't do anything to him. As a matter of fact, it was him who did me. I mean, something to me. Can we get back to the movie now?" I said, giving him an irritated look. Thank God he let the subject drop. I just wasn't ready to explain to him about me yet. So I can't exactly tell him that I met Michael last Saturday at a gay bar downtown while he went home for the weekend, without revealing my sexuality, can I? And I can't exactly tell him that I slept with Michael, can I? Jesus. What is wrong with the guys now? Isn't it possible to get a decent lay any more? Michael was just a momentarily thing. I told him that clearly. And he's not getting it. He's been pestering me since that night. I better sort it out before he says anything else. Just then, my mobile phone rang. I know it's Michael even before I see his name flashing on my cell. "Yes." "Hey, why are you avoiding me?" Alex, was right. He really is shouting. I stood up and went to my room so that I could have some privacy. "Listen, Michael. I'm not avoiding you coz I have no reason to. I told you several times already to stop bothering me. What happened between us was just a one-night stand. It was just sex. A one- time, heat-of-the-moment thing. You were horny, I was horny. It was just SEX, ok?! Plain and simple. It didn't mean anything, not to me or to you. It never did and it never will. Do you get that?! Now. Stop pestering me." I ended the call before he could respond. I hope he finally gets the message. I know that was a little bit rude, but hey, saying it nicely doesn't get the message across so, what's the point of being nice? I was starting to feel relieved but when I looked up, Alex was standing by the door. "Sorry, I didn't mean to eavesdrop. I was just going to tell you that your favorite part is on. It's the baptism already." "Oh. okay. uhm.. How long have you been standing there?" I didn't have to hear his answer when I saw him look at the floor and blush. "I.. I guess you heard everything then. Listen, Alex, I need to talk to you. I mean, jeez. I didn't want to come out this way," I say the last part almost to myself. "Lawrence, you don't have to explain anything. It's none of my business." I stopped the movie and we were sitting in front of one another in the living room. I have never felt so nervous in my entire life. I mean, I have outed myself several times to my closest friends, but never to a family member. And that's what Alex is to me now-- a family member. Even though it's only recently that we got to know one another, I have always known about Alex, and well he's my closest friend right now. "Listen Lawrence, you don't have to explain anything. I mean that. It's none of my business or anybody else's for that matter." He stood up before I could say anything. He was on his way to the dining room when the intensity of my voice startled both of us. "Damn it Alex! Will you get your ass back to the chair and listen to what I have to say?!" He hesitantly sat back on the chair. We just sat there for what seemed like a century before he looked at me straight in the eye and muttered three words that would forever change our relationship. "Lawrence, I know." "I know that you heard the conversation Alex and I -" "No, it's not just the call. Lawrence, I know that you're gay for a long time now. I've suspected it from the moment your jaws dropped when you saw me. I mean, let's face it. You were gawking at me." He smiled when he said this, but his humor was lost on me. I didn't know how to react. So for once, I just let him do the talking. ""Remember the third day when I still didn't have my towels? You told me to get it in your room and that day I saw some gay porn, several actually. It was then that I confirmed my suspicions about you. To be honest, I was a little shocked at first. I mean, Ma always told us about your girl troubles, so I couldn't believe it at first. But the porn confirmed it." My face felt like it was on fire. I can feel the blood rushing to it and I was red, not in anger but in embarrassment. I never thought he saw my porn. "I. I..didn't." I didn't know what to say. I was still searching my mind for the right words but he beat me to it. "You don't have to worry. I won't tell anyone, especially not my family. So you hungry? You better be, coz I'm gonna cook lamb chops like you've never tasted before." With that, he stood up and went to the kitchen, leaving me still thrown at what just happened. Over the best lamb chops I've ever had, I still couldn't look at him in the eye. I wanted to tell him how I felt so with one long draw of breath, I looked at him and opened myself up. "Alex, I didn't know that you knew. But I have long wanted to tell you since you got here. You were right, I was gawking at you then. You just looked incredibly. different I mean. Last time I saw you, you had thick glasses.... And well , you were such a geek then. No offense. But when you walked in the door, you looked totally different, to say the least. "I guess I was just waiting for the right time to tell you. But we both know there isn't any right time. I guess I was just scared. Scared, that you might freak out and run back home. And that would mean that your parents knowing and then my parents. In as much as I want to tell them that their only child is gay, I know I'm not yet ready. They're not yet ready. I dunno. I'm not just prepared to that yet. Not right now. So I put off telling you until. until this happened. "You're right. It's nobody's business, but I wanted you to know coz you mean so much to me now. We're not just flat mates, but you're like the brother I never had. I'm just extremely thankful that you're cool with this." "What's the big deal? I mean, I don't go telling people that I'm straight, right? So I don't see why you should either. Now, eat up. Your mom has been asking me if you're eating right. She said she's holding me personally accountable for your weight." He smiled at me and with that simple gesture, the ice has been crushed and I never felt closer to anyone in my life. ~~*~~