Date: Sun, 25 Dec 2011 16:38:54 -0500 From: Sean Williams Subject: The Trap, Chapter 10 Arun pulled open the blinds and Colby covered his eyes with a hairy forearm. "What did you do that for?" he asked. "Come back to bed, baby." "Colby, I need to go to work," said Arun. The light which flooded the room made his profile stand out strongly to Colby, who continued to lounge in the bed. "I've been late to work every day this week, my dude, and you've just been lazing around my apartment like a hobo." "Um... I think you mean like a 'homo'." "No, I meant 'hobo', as in a homeless person..." "Oh yeah," said Colby, sitting up in bed now that he realized that Arun was not inclined to get back in bed nor let him sleep all day... 'like a homo'. "It's too early, Arun," Colby added. "It's eight o'clock, Colby," Arun remarked. "That's not early. Get your pasty ass up!" "You really think it's pasty," and Colby got on all fours and turned around, with his ass up in the air. Arun laughed to himself and looked away, but his eyes, as if drawn by a super-powered research laboratory magnet, slowly made their way back to that beautiful rugby-playing ass. It was pure physics. Take that, MIT nerds! Colby reached up with his hands and pried apart his ass cheeks giving Arun a perfect view of his tight pink hole. From the gap between his legs, Arun could see Colby's square face behind meaty pecs with a light spattering of brown hair. "I still it's pasty," said Arun, reaching forward and giving that high-quality ass a firm slap. That was grade A Princeton ass if there ever was one. "I'm heading to the shower and I better not see any hobos, homos, Princeton yuppies, trust fund brats, etc. lying in my bed when I get back, kay?" said Arun. Colby, realizing that Arun, like the Borg, was going to have his way or no way at all, and thus resistance was futile, got up and quickly got dressed. He shouted to Arun through the half-opened bathroom door that he was going to grab breakfast from the diner around the corner and bring it back to the apartment. "I'm gonna be gone when you get back, bro," said Arun. "Alright," said Colby. "I'll just have to eat the most awesome breakfast ever all by myself!" "Wait!" shouted Arun, emerging dripping wet from the bathroom. He threw his arms around Colby and kissed him square on the lips. Colby opened his mouth and their lips locked, with a sensual mingling of tongues, as Arun's firm and wet body dropped water all over Colby and his clothes. Colby's cock grew hard through his now wet shorts as he stood there with his arms around Arun and with their semi-hard cocks touching through the fabric. Arun kissed Colby on the neck and their faces touched. Colby reached forward and grabbed Arun's ass cheeks and then slapped them. "What's wrong, buddy?" asked Colby. "Whatever happens..." said Arun, "just remember that everything was real, alright?" "What?" asked Colby, shaking his head with a smile. "I don't know what you're talking about, my dude. I gotta go and hopefully people won't stare at me now that my clothes are all wet, AND I haven't shaved in days. I probably look like Tom Hanks in fucking Cast Away, or whatever that movie was called." "Get outta here, man!" "Alright, Arun," said Colby. "Don't be too late to work and leave the door unlocked so I can get back in." "The key will be under the mat and I'll tell mean old Mrs. McKracken in 4B to buzz you in," said Arun. "THAT sounds like a great idea..." said Colby as he walked out of the apartment. "I can't believe Mrs. Kracken... I mean, McKracken... actually buzzed me in," thought Colby to himself, hours later, as he sat waiting on a park bench. "She's usually so mean..." As Colby sat watching the midday sun in its apex in the sky, all he could think was that after this must come the sunset; and in just this fashion, his summer was winding down and soon he would be heading back to Princeton, New Jersey, for another year among the gilded youth of the Yuppie Empire. He liked Princeton, there were days that he loved it, but there were also days in which he loathed the place: the people sometimes struck him as false, sheltered, and out of touch. He pondered that he must be just as sheltered and out of touch as all the rest, but he yearned for more. There was a world out there, beyond the mansions of California, the colonial homes and gardens of the Princeton surrounds, the high-ceilinged parlors of New York and Boston; there was a world out there of people to meet, people with hopes, passions, and fears just like him. People that lived in deserts, in huts, on fjords, in villages falling down from the mountainside. There were people that hunted antelope with spears and worshipped gods of sun and rain. Here he was, a spoiled California rich kid with a place at Princeton and all he had really seen of the world was the private jets, the mansions, the blonde jocks: American hedonism at its best. But wasn't there more to the world than that? There seemed to be. Arun opened up that world to him, and Colby wondered if he could ever go back to the world he had come from. He wondered if he wanted to. On those villages clinging to the mountainside, there were people that loved someone just as deeply as he loved Arun. He yearned to meet them, but he didn't know how. "You're early," said Rider, emerging suddenly from behind Colby. Colby stood up with a grin and opened his arms for his Princeton chum to give him a hug. "I was pretty shocked to get your call," he said, meeting Rider in a friendly embrace, "and I'm happy to see you." "Really?" asked Rider. "Of course, man," Colby replied. "Do you even need to ask? You are one of the coolest guys I met at Princeton and its a shame you won't be there when I head back in a few weeks." "I can't believe the summer's already over. Or almost..." "You can't believe it?" asked Colby. "I can't believe it. I seriously didn't do anything. I'm beginning to think I really am a spoiled trust fund brat." "Well," Rider began, searching for the right words, "all you can do is try to do right with what you have. You know, make the most of it." "You're right, bro," said Colby. "So what's this about you being in a band? You mentioned that in your message and I was like: 'Wha...?'" "Yeah, well, I'm in a band," Rider admitted. "It's too bad you couldn't make it to our show in L.A. yesterday." "Dude, you called me that morning." "I know, I know. It was short notice, but it would have been so awesome if you could have come. I was bummed that you couldn't be there. My band made a mockery of Western musical tradition and it was pretty awesome! Dude, I was so bummed that you weren't in the audience..." Rider avoided Colby's eyes as he said this, and Colby wondered what the meaning was behind what he said. Colby had to admit that Rider was a very handsome guy - in that, settle down and get hitched type of way. At 6'5 he was very tall, with dark hair and dark eyes, a strong chin, a handsome smile, and an incredible, though somewhat reserved, personality to top it all off. Rider was a huge departure from the Troys that most of Colby's youth seemed to be stuffed with. The basketball standout struck all that he met as someone that would be an upstanding gentleman and very successful one day. If he was a chick, Colby would have been a fool to pass up someone like Rider, and he knew, somehow, that Rider was interested: there was a familiar gleam in his eye. But Colby had Arun, and he wanted nothing else. With Arun in his life, Colby did not have any interest in anyone else. Those flighty moments with Troy were a distant memory, although Colby still had yet to disclose all that had happened between the two boarding school chums to Arun. That time would come. "So, I'm in a band..." Rider remarked. "Called..." "Actually, the band is called Immense Armee," said Rider. "We're a Radiohead cover-band. One of my bandmates came up with the name because at first there were like nine members in the band, none of whom could play any instruments, or sing well. I managed to pick up the guitar and this dude Rich is really good with the synthesizer. Now we're down to three so we're not as immense anymore." "Who's the third member?" "Do you know Jonah Hammersmith?" "Jonah Hammersmith from the football team?" asked Colby. "Do I know Jonah Hammersmith? Of course I know Jonah. Everyone fucking knows Jonah! He's a cockblocker of epic proportions!" "Yeah, he kinda has that rep," said Rider. "What, he never cockblocked you before? I could tell you about this one time freshmen year... it was weird..." "No, Jonah never cockblocked me before," Rider admitted. "You know I didn't really date much at Princeton. I mean, once in a while, but not frequent enough to be, you know, cockblocked." "I don't know why," Colby offered. "You're a handsome guy. I'd fuck you if I wasn't with someone right now." "Colby..." laughed Rider, face turning red. "Don't mind me," said Colby. "I'm just a big dummy. I know someone that could tell you all about it. But anyway, tell me about Immense Armee." "Well, we're a Radiohead cover band, but we play other stuff, too. I've started writing music for us, but since none of us can really sing without intense synthesized tunes in the background, I've shelved the stuff I've written for now. Man, we really need to get Jonah some singing lessons..." "I honestly can't believe offensive lineman Jonah Hammersmith is in your band." "Yeah," said Rider, "and he's kind of a diva. Once we whittled down our nine members to three, we all decided that we should change the band name from Immense Armee to something else more fitting, you know?" "Makes sense." "...so Jonah suggested that we call ourselves the Hammersmiths..." "The Hammersmiths? That's hysterical. That's so Jonah and I can bet you he wasn't kidding." "No, he definitely wasn't kidding. Jonah Hammersmith really wanted us to call ourselves the Hammersmiths, and when we said 'no' to that he suggested Jonah's Immense Armee. Rich was like: 'Dude, you may think you're Diana Ross, but you're definitely not.' Good times." "Hell yeah, good times!" Colby agreed. "I definitely need to hear your band now, even if you're just a Radiohead cover band." "Don't get your hopes up, bro. We're definitely not that good." "But those are the best bands! The 'not good' ones!" "If you say so. Well, I better get going, Colby. I'm still bummed that you couldn't make it out, but it's good to see you." "You, too, man," said Colby. "I don't know if you mind heading up North a bit in about two weeks, because Immense Armee will actually be headlining at the seediest bar in Portland and, well, this is like the greatest thing to ever happen to us." Colby laughed. "I would love to, my man, but I don't think I can make it. I have lots of business down here and I will be heading to Princeton to get settled for the new year not long after that. You know, the usual yuppie bullshit." "I understand, bro," said Rider, nodding his head, but looking somewhat disappointed. "It's gotta be hard being an evil trust fund yuppie aristocrat." "You would know all about that Mr. I-Just-Landed-An-Awesome-Job-In-New-York-And-I-Have-My-Own-Radiohead-Cover-Band." "Very funny, asshole." "I still can't believe Mrs. McKracken buzzed me in this morning..." Colby whispered to himself. "Kracken as in 'Clash of the...'" "It's a long story," Colby interrupted, then he opened wide his arms and reached forward until he was bearhugging Rider, who was a good two or three inches taller than him, but not as beefy. "I'm gonna miss you, man." "It's not like I'm dying of cancer, Colby," said Rider. "I just graduated from Princeton a year early." "No, I know," Colby began, looking down at his strong hands, "but you're just one of those guys that it's really good to know. I don't mean that in a personal interest kinda way, like for favors, or whatever. It's just... I always really admired you. You always worked hard in class and on the court and I just always thought you were a great guy." "You really mean that?" Rider asked, his voice deepening a bit. "I do." Rider broke from the embrace, softly and with watery eyes, and he half turned and began to walk away. "Rider," Colby added, "good luck, alright?" "My band will probably bomb, Colby..." "No, not that," said Colby, "just in everything." "Take it easy, Colby," said Rider as he walked away. Standing by the bench, occasionally glancing over at the Golden Gate Bridge and the town beyond, and contemplating the parting, Colby suddenly turned to discover a familiar, and unwanted, personage standing only a foot or two away from him. "It's been a long time." "Not long enough, Gruder," Colby growled. "Now is that anyway to treat that Chairman of your father's company..." "My company," said Colby. "Fitzpatrick Chemical is my company and I am invested in its survival more than you could ever be." Gruder had a way of standing like he was straddling the globe: legs wide apart, back somewhat arched, head pointed upward. They didn't make them like him anymore and if he wasn't Colby's fiercest adversary, the young man might actually have admired him. "That's funny," Gruder said, with a forced chuckle, "because I haven't seen you at any of the meetings lately. In fact, I haven't seen you anywhere near the corporate headquarters in a good two weeks." "I did visit Mr. Matsumoto in the hospital." "Yes, you did," Gruder admitted. "I believe that was right before you trotted over to your old boarding school, the Cumming Powers Academy, with your friend Troy." "How did you...?" "How did I know?" Gruder completed Colby's question. "It's my job to know everything, especially when it comes to the prince." "The..." "That's you, dumbass." "I'm not stupid, Gruder," said Colby, stepping forward menacingly. If Gruder wanted to fight mano-y-mano, Colby had absolutely no intention of backing down. Gruder shrugged. "I'm not here to fight," he said. "Yes, I have you followed, but only because your affairs are company business whether you choose to acknowledge that fact or not. I would hate for you to end up like your father: locked up in a mental hospital. It's funny because I know so many psychiatrists in the Bay area that have a free hand when it comes to signing certified documentation..." "What are you getting at, Gruder?" Gruder stepped forward - looking like a million bucks in a slimfitting Dior Homme suit - and patted Colby firmly on the chest. It seemed the chairman wanted to part amicably. "Come to the board meeting tomorrow," he said. "And look your best. Your very best..." [To Be Continued] [Thanks for reading, guys, and e-mail comments, corrections, even bitching to the address above. I haven't heard any good bitching in a while... You can even e-mail your guesses about the fates of Colby and Arun! Later, guys!]