Dating Rules And Pretty Fools Ch. 2
By Laura S. Fox
Copyright © 2023 Laura S. Fox
All Rights Reserved
Gay Erotica
Intended for Mature Audiences Only
This story will contain graphic depictions of sexual intercourse, strong
language and it is not meant for readers who are less than 18 years of age.
Consider making a donation to Nifty by clicking the little blue button
on the front page, as they help us all enjoy so many great stories, while
aiding authors like me to display their work.
Chapter Two Research Is
the Mother of Learning
That was the fifth in two
days, Otis dutifully wrote in his notepad. Of course, there could be more since
he wasn't there all the time to spy on his neighbor. Also, standing in the
hallway and always pretending to be busy with inspecting the light fixtures for
signs that they needed changing although that wasn't something that fell
within his responsibilities was highly impractical. There was, as well, the
matter of doing all this research on the downlow so
that Hudson didn't start to suspect that he was the main subject in the
scientific endeavor Otis was conducting at the moment. It was only a vague
idea, but he believed that his new neighbor might not take being spied on lightly.
One thing Otis had
noticed was the reasonable level of attractiveness in the young men frequenting
Hudson's apartment. They seem to do fairly well in the muscle department and
they wore tight clothes. Some had jewelry, such as ear studs, and some had
tattoos. He was completely thorough in his evaluations and he wrote down all
the aspects he considered important.
For instance, the average
session for each date Hudson organized in his apartment was between half an
hour and an hour. Briefly, Otis had thought that his neighbor might be running
some sort of tattoo business in there, but that idea was quickly discarded.
Peeking around the corner when the door to 505 opened to let the newcomer out,
he had observed a certain degree of intimacy between Hudson and those young
men. Supposedly, tattoo artists didn't send their customers on their way with
pats on the butt. Even if Otis knew close to nothing about the habits of such
people, he thought it sound to conclude that those young men were Hudson's
dates.
Did Hudson have a Grindr
account? The mere idea made it tempting to re-install the app and hunt for
those sleeve tattoos; even if people there didn't always show their faces,
opting for other body parts, Otis was confident he'd be able to identify his
very handsome neighbor. However, that app wasn't for the faint of heart, which
he was, and wading through a sea of naked bodies with all kinds of tags
attached seemed like a perilous journey.
He pulled at the collar
of his dress shirt. He was thinking of seeing his neighbor naked. It was, he
convinced himself, nothing but an exercise in futility. That would never
happen. He was basically the opposite of those attractive young men going in
and out of Hudson's apartment.
Lost in thought as he
was, he missed the door opening to 505. He pulled himself back around the
corner, but it felt like one moment too late.
***
Hudson waited for a full
minute for Otis to emerge from behind the corner. Didn't he realize that his
shadow was giving him away? He had seen his neighbor from 508 sneaking around,
armed with a notepad, and scurrying away the moment Hudson opened his door.
That was odd; if Otis hadn't been so strange in his mannerisms, Hudson would've
suspected that his movements were being followed, which wasn't a good thing,
given the nature of his operation. Could it be only some strange curiosity? Or
was it something else? His gut instinct lay dormant when it came to the
attractive youth living a few doors away, but he couldn't discard the signs.
Otis, as in Otis like the elevator, was not so low-key stalking him. Hudson
was curious about what that notepad contained.
It wasn't like him to
postpone making things clear. "You can come out," he said loudly. Since Otis
didn't appear to understand that he was the one Hudson was talking to, he
continued. "Come on. I can see your shoes."
Finally, Otis peeked from
around the corner. "You cannot. The angle is not right. And I'm standing far back."
Hudson crossed his arms
and gave the pretty fool a hard stare. "How about you pay me a neighborly visit
right now?" He pushed the door to his apartment wide open.
"Right now?" Otis asked,
seemingly oblivious that he had just been caught in the act. "I have work in an
hour."
"I'll be mindful of
that," Hudson assured him. "Come on."
Otis didn't appear in the
least disturbed by having had his cover blown and walked toward Hudson, the
notepad under his arm. Then, he made a small stiff bow before walking into the
apartment.
Was that too much trust?
The young men who had crossed his threshold over the last few days knew what
they were getting into. Hudson felt an unpleasant knot tying itself up in his
gut at how obliviously Otis walked in. If he were a bad man, he'd be pleased
with having such easy prey walk right into his trap. He shook his head. Going
through the case file day and night had clearly made his mind work in nasty
ways. What they said was true, investigators had to be able to put themselves
in the perpetrator's shoes to understand what motivated them, what made them
act against other human beings. Whether or not that was healthy was a matter
still up for debate.
He invited Otis into the
small living room that served as his studio. There was a sofa, a camera set on
a tripod, and other paraphernalia needed for his current line of business,
lined up against the wall to the left and scattered on a table. Otis stopped
for a moment, appeared to throw a quick look at the offending objects and then
sat awkwardly on the sofa, only to get up a moment later, as if something had burned
the seat of his pants.
"What?" Hudson asked
gruffly. "I use a blanket when someone's over."
Otis blinked a few times
and their eyes met. No, not their eyes. While Hudson used both of his to look
at his visitor, Otis had his left eye covered, as seemed to be his habit.
"There isn't a blanket now," he pointed out.
Hudson moved slowly and
rested one hand on the camera. He swung his hips for a moment, while gauging
the other's reactions. Otis appeared to follow his every move with curiosity...
no, it was more than that. The only exposed eye showed hints of awe and
fascination. It felt a tad strange to be looked at like that. As the type of
man used to getting plenty of appreciative looks from members of both sexes,
Hudson felt a bit thrown by that particular interest shining in Otis's
startlingly beautiful eye. "Are you here for the same thing as the others?" he
asked.
Otis looked at the
camera, appeared to hesitate, and then shook his head. Hudson shifted his
weight from one foot to the other. Why did he feel disappointed at that? Did he
really expect his very prim and proper neighbor to walk in here and take off
his clothes? That was crazy. "Why are you here?"
"You invited me for a
neighborly visit," Otis replied promptly.
"Right," Hudson said
dryly. This kid was too smart for his own good, it seemed. "Let me rephrase
that." As he said the words, he walked over to his visitor, grabbed the notepad
out of his hand and pushed him back to sit on the sofa. "It's clean, by the way.
Why are you watching me?"
He moved back to a safe
distance safe for whom? and began leafing through the scribbled pages. They
were filled with timestamps and details about the guys who had visited him over
the last few days. They weren't all there, but the precision with each of the
visits had been jotted down was impressive. "Do you have a thing for tattoos?"
He looked at Otis, who sat there, hands on his knees, his back straight, as if
he were just about to be questioned by a teacher.
"I do not," Otis informed
him.
"Who sent you?" Hudson
asked and frowned in thought as his eyes glided over the next entries in Otis's
strange stake-out book. This visitor must
have put something in his pants, because they bulged quite uncomfortably in
front. He looked as if he had stuffed a raccoon in there. Do they bring
raccoons on dates now?
That must have been the
guy who had come with his own chastity device in place. Now that had been an
interesting photoshoot. No raccoon, unfortunately, Hudson thought and looked at
Otis pointedly. "Has the raccoon got your tongue?" he asked, barely keeping in
a smile.
"No," Otis replied and
pursed his lips. Then, he inhaled deeply. He looked as if he was building up
courage for whatever was next. "I want to ask you if you could help me and, if
it wouldn't be that much of a bother, provide me with some dating advice."
"Dating what?" Hudson had
considered that many different things, some of them undefined, could come out
of Otis's pretty mouth, but not that.
"Advice," Otis shot the
word out as if it was a toad he had almost swallowed by accident.
"And what makes you think
you're going to get that here?" Hudson asked, now partially relieved that his
cute neighbor was simply odd, and not someone sent to watch his every move.
However, he didn't need that sort of complication, so he began to rip the pages
from Otis's notebook and then tear them into pieces.
"That's not very nice. It
doesn't belong to you," Otis scolded him.
"Maybe. But the things
you wrote in here don't belong to you, either."
Otis appeared to ponder.
Then, after some deliberation, he said, "That is true. I apologize if I made
you feel uncomfortable by spying on you."
"So, you agree that
you've been spying on me," Hudson said.
"Yes. But it was for research.
And research is the mother of learning. I need to learn."
"What, exactly? My work
schedule?"
Otis turned his head to
look around, but only briefly. "What kind of work do you do, if you don't mind
my asking?"
"I do mind. It's nothing
kids like you should know about," Hudson said. The little neighborly visit was
over, and he could safely send Otis back to his apartment.
"I am not a kid," Otis
said, carefully enunciating every word. "I am twenty-two years old."
"Yeah, you mentioned that.
Come on, let me see you out." Hudson gestured for Otis to get up.
Otis did, but not without
reluctance. "What about the advice?"
"Look somewhere else,
kid."
Before Otis had a chance
to protest again at being called that, Hudson took him by the arm, not too
firmly, as his cute neighbor seemed like the kind to get startled easily. They
were almost at the door when an energetic knock came.
Hudson pushed Otis back a
little and looked through the peephole. He wasn't expecting anyone at that
particular hour, and the guy standing at his door didn't appear a good fit for
the job, either. Without looking behind him, he stretched out a hand. "You,
back in there," he advised and opened the door.
The new visitor was
somewhere north of forty, with thinning black hair, brushed back. His face was
bony, and his eyes were cold. He wore a long coat, his hands stuffed in his
pockets.
"Yeah?" Hudson asked.
"Mr. Vegas," the man
said, without actually asking, "it looks like you're running a business. Do you
mind if I come in?"
Hudson barely had time to
step aside. He looked down the hallway briefly. The presence of the two goons
by the elevator didn't surprise him. Then, he turned, and froze when he saw the
dangerous newcomer facing Otis, who was staring back, with all that candor that
seemed to be him.
Quickly, Hudson moved
between them. He pushed Otis into the small kitchenette that was, thankfully,
separated by a door. "Darling, how about you go make me a sandwich?" he
drawled. Then, as he turned toward his new visitor, he continued, "How can I
help you, Mr.--"
"Watkins," the man
replied. "Who was that? One of your... models?"
"No," Hudson replied,
feeling his hackles rising. Talk about being in the wrong place at the wrong
time.
"Too bad. He's got a good
face."
"He's not made for
business," Hudson said quickly. "Now, what can I help you with, Mr. Watkins?"
He made no move to invite the other to sit. Part of his cover was being an
insolent prick, as well as being a guy who seemed to lack basic awareness of
what kind of dangerous situation he was getting himself into.
"Yes, you're right," the
man said. "You can help me. Greatly." He produced a business card from an
inside chest pocket with a gloved hand. "I presume boys with the ambition of becoming
part of the entertainment industry often come knocking on your door. I've seen
some of your body of work on that website of yours. I'd say you have a good
eye. How about you send such boys to me? I have even more venues to offer. And
I bet they can use the money."
"I see. Any particular
type of young man you're looking for?" Hudson didn't like the way Watkins's
eyes moved to the door of the kitchenette. "He's not for sale," he said
pointedly.
Watkins looked at him
with a sly smile. "Everything is, usually. For the right price. But I'm not
here to step on your turf, Mr. Vegas. Do you understand?"
Oh, he understood all
right. That was a warning. "Yes, of course. You still haven't answered my
question. What's your pleasure? Blonds, redheads?"
"Desperate," Watkins said
from the tip of his lips.
"I see," Hudson said
slowly. Could it be that he was lucky enough to have one of the men running the
human trafficking ring knocking on his door so soon? His eyes moved toward the
narrow door leading to the kitchenette. Not so lucky, though. The timing was
horrible.
***
Otis felt rightfully
annoyed, he believed. What was with that sudden demand for a sandwich? He
wasn't there to make sandwiches, and he wasn't a darling to Hudson, either. He
meditated briefly. Maybe his neighbor was demanding some sort of payment for
dating advice. That had to be it. Then, making a sandwich wasn't that big a
deal. The darling matter, however, was not that clear.
He slowly inspected the
small space, until his eyes fell on the small refrigerator in the corner. He
opened it and stared inside. A lot of beer. Pursing his lips, Otis took one
bottle out and looked at the label. With a shrug, he placed it on the counter
and proceeded to continue his investigations. He had been caught in the act so
easily. Never before had he felt so inadequate. That wasn't true. He almost
always felt inadequate in his interactions with other human beings.
He missed his grandma so
much. She understood him. And now, under such duress, she'd know what to do.
Otis identified a small egg, forlorn in a case for a dozen, and picked it up. He
then placed it carefully next to the beer bottle. He had to look inside the
cupboards, too, and after much searching he came up with one slice of bread,
which he sniffed for any signs that it had gone bad. With great pains, he found
some bacon behind the beer bottles.
It looked like there was
barely anything else. Disconcerted, he took another long look at his meager findings.
Hudson had a very unhealthy lifestyle, but it wasn't Otis's responsibility to
correct that. However, he had been asked to perform a task, and maybe it would
be considered payment for at least one piece of advice on dating rules.
He opened the microwave
on the counter, glad to have found at least one appliance in that poorly
appointed kitchen. It wasn't very different than his, but he had a breakfast
maker machine that could toast the bread, fry the egg, melt the cheese, and
then serve everything in a round shape Otis liked a lot. Hudson didn't look
like he had anything like that in there.
He put the bacon on a
plate and then broke the egg, separating it from the shell with extreme care.
He punctured the yolk a couple of times with the tip of a knife he had found in
one of the drawers. Then, he placed everything inside the microwave, and stared
intently. His grandma had taught him a lot of tricks, how long to let the
microwave do its job and all that. Pleased with the result, he assembled everything
on the slice of bread. It wasn't much of a sandwich, but that wasn't his fault.
Next time, he'd recommend that Hudson let him go to his place and bring back
some food, or even use his breakfast maker to prepare some proper sandwiches.
After a short moment of
deliberation, he opened the beer bottle. Hudson hadn't mentioned it, but maybe
he liked a drink with his sandwich. Just as he was admiring his handiwork,
thinking that he hadn't done a half-bad job, the door opened, and Hudson walked
in with a displeased look on his face.
There was so little space
in that room, that they were now standing close, so close that Otis had to tip
his head back. Since he didn't have enough room to move, he made an awkward
gesture toward the sandwich on the counter.
"What is that?" Hudson
asked. He seemed in a bad mood. Otis knew a few things about bad moods. Some
people would say he knew a lot, not just a few.
However, now it was
important to insist if he wanted to learn at least some introductory details about
dating. "It's the sandwich you asked for. You know, you could ask more nicely
when you want people to do things for you. And your refrigerator doesn't have
food. I mean, this is all I could find. And beer."
Hudson groaned and ran
one hand over his face. "Jesus, kid. Did I get myself a wife or something? This
visit's over. Beat it."
Otis was nonplussed for a
moment. Was the sandwich he made that bad? Hudson hadn't even tasted it. "No,
it's not," he said stubbornly. "You must say thank you." That was what his
grandma had taught him a long time ago. When someone did something for you, you
thanked them, even if you weren't necessarily happy with it.
Hudson seemed about to
relent for a moment, but then he quickly grabbed Otis by the scruff of his neck
and proceeded to escort him out of the room. All his efforts from the past few days
were going down the drain before his very eyes. Otis dug his heels in once they
reached the hallway. "I'm not leaving before you give me some dating advice."
"Right." Hudson finally
let go of him. "Here it is. Consider it a freebie. Don't knock on the wrong
door."
Otis dutifully took out
his phone. His notebook was back there, and he didn't dare go get it.
"Are you kidding me?
You're writing it down?"
"So that I don't forget,"
he explained. "And I'm still waiting for that thank you."
"Fuck me," Hudson
groaned. "All right, have it your way. Thank you for the sandwich. We cool
now?"
"No," Otis said
stubbornly. "I can tell you don't really mean it."
Hudson grabbed him by the
back of his neck again and turned him toward the door. "Don't let that door hit
you in the ass, `kay?"
"That's not very nice,"
Otis insisted.
"Don't press your luck,"
Hudson growled, but he wasn't scary or anything. "Goodbye, kid. Stop spying on
me."
Otis stared at the closed
door that had just been slammed in his face for a bit. That hadn't gone too well,
but things weren't that terrible either. Somehow, he felt that he could press
his luck with his neighbor. Grandma wouldn't agree, most probably. She'd frown
at Otis's insistence, which was a sign of bad upbringing, but he felt
courageous today.
Don't
knock on the wrong door. Yes, it was a good piece of advice.
Otis believed that it was Hudson's way of saying that he shouldn't go for men
that weren't right for him, seeing how he hadn't actually knocked on any door,
let alone the one to his neighbor's apartment. He didn't plan to opt for men
who weren't right for him. Even better, that little piece of advice from Hudson
also helped remove a heavy rock from his chest. Now, he had the confirmation
that Grindr wasn't the right app for him.
***
Hudson entered the
kitchenette in a state of annoyance mixed with alarm. He had been unreasonably
hard on the kid, but it was for his own good. Watkins, if that was the man's
real name, had instantly took to Otis, smelling blood in the water like the
fucking shark he was. Even without having a nosy neighbor getting up to no
good, the present situation was bound to become dangerous sooner rather than
later. Hopefully, Watkins got the message that the pretty airhead he had
happened to meet there was off-limits. And, although that was where Hudson
nurtured many fewer hopes, Otis also understood that it wasn't a good idea to
stick his nose into other people's business.
Absentmindedly, he took
the sandwich from the table and began eating. The yolk dripped over his
fingers. "Fuck," he groaned, and then realization hit him. It was a damn good
sandwich. He only needed to be careful not to get yolk all over himself.
So, Otis from 508, Otis like
the elevator, Otis who was only heaven knew why in terrible need of dating
advice, that Otis also knew how to make a sandwich. Hudson shrugged. The
chances were Watkins wouldn't come sniffing around too often. A man who needed
two goons to guard his ass didn't prefer visiting dingy apartments all the time.
That was a man who wasn't exactly at the top of the food chain, but obviously
had ambition. This little meeting had been a means to impress Hudson Mr.
Vegas, as his undercover nickname indicated by catching him with his pants
down, so to speak. It looked like Watkins appreciated a business partner that would
cause no trouble.
However, trouble was
exactly what he had in mind to cause certain people. The game was afoot. There
was just a little pinprick that made him itchy, and it had a name. Hudson shrugged
again. He was reading too much into everything. However, he'd keep an eye on
his nosy neighbor, one of the reasons being that he wanted very much to see
that other eye.
***
Confusion was natural,
Otis thought as he joined Missy at waiting tables on the floor, promoted as he
seemed to be to that role since Jerry had chosen to be a no-show for good. Mr.
Smith had promised him a raise, too, and that was a good reason to be happy and
dedicate himself to waiting the tables. He enjoyed doing his job competently,
but it was getting difficult with him thinking of his handsome neighbor all the
time. There was also the matter of that ugly man who visited Hudson that day.
Otis scolded himself; it wasn't nice to call other people ugly. It was only how
the man had looked at him, with the sort of curiosity one would have toward an
animal, that had made Otis think of him as repulsive.
Missy woke him from his
conflicting musings by nudging his elbow. "That man is here again," she
whispered.
"What man?" Otis asked.
Did she mean the ugly man visiting Hudson that time? But, how could sheHe was
being silly again. She meant someone completely different.
Missy moved even closer.
She was so short that even with someone like him, she had to push herself up on
her toes to reach his ear. "Don't look. It's the guy in that well-cut suit at
table three. It looks like he likes that table. And you."
Otis tried to look in the
direction indicated, but Missy hissed at him again. "Don't look."
"How can I look at him without
looking?"
Missy pushed a menu into
his hands. "He just asked for you. I would've flipped him off, but our dear
boss doesn't exactly take well to what he calls my antics. Now, go. Whatever he
offers, say `no'."
"He'll ask for food. I
can't tell him `no'," Otis replied, feeling more confused than before.
Missy rolled her eyes.
"You know what I mean."
No, he didn't. But, armed
with the menu, he walked toward table three with what he hoped was a
deferential smile, and not the kind that freaked people out.
***
The customer at table
three was alone. He wore, indeed, what looked like a well-cut suit, as Missy
had put it, in the sense that it draped well on his body. Unlike Otis, he had a
reasonable meat percentage to show off, and the suit jacket stretched across his
shoulders as it should. He had dark hair that looked greasy in the restaurant
light; he probably used some hair product, Otis decided. It was too shiny to be
just dirty. Especially, since the rest of the man appeared to be clean.
"Good evening, sir," he
said quietly.
The man, who had been absorbed
in something on his phone, raised his eyes and smiled when he saw him. He
looked younger than Otis had thought while eyeing him from afar. He moved his
arms in wide gestures, as he put his phone down and then accepted the menu from
Otis's hands.
"Hi there, pretty eyes."
He began leafing through the menu with one hand while he touched his tie pin
with the other. It was silver and drew attention to itself by being in contrast
with the black tie. Everything the man wore was black, including his dress
shirt. Except for that pin.
After what felt like no
longer than a minute, the customer handed Otis back the menu and ordered with
something akin to affectation. Otis knew that word because it could be mistaken
with affection. The affectation in this case came with ordering the most
expensive things on the menu, not that they had a lot of those. "I will have to
ask the cook," he said. "It might take a bit."
"That's all right," the
man said joyously. He had a boyish face when he smiled. Although the well-cut
suit suited him well, when he smiled like that, he looked like a boy stealing
his older brother's clothes so that he could pretend to be someone else. "I can
wait if you keep me company."
"I can't," Otis said curtly.
"I have other customers."
According to Missy, this
young man wanted him as his arm candy. That could mean exactly that, or it
could mean that the customer in front of him was interested in getting a date.
Since it appeared that he wasn't right for Otis, being so young and wearing his
older brother's clothes, the best course of action was to follow the advice
offered by Hudson.
"What other customers?"
It was a slow night, and
there were only a couple of other tables occupied. Missy was on the job. Therefore,
his lie, as white as he intended it to be, didn't hold water. The correct thing
to do was to let him down gently, either he was interested in some strange sort
of arm candy, or a date.
"I will be right back,"
he said, nodding shortly.
"Don't take long," the
customer called out after him.
The cook, after mumbling
something about wannabes and crooks, most of which Otis didn't understand,
agreed to prepare the meal the young man wanted. Without any reason to linger
in the kitchen, Otis returned to table three.
The smile from before
grew wider on the young man's face. "I'm Jackie," he said, but without offering
his hand like Hudson had. "And you are," he pretended to squint while reading
Otis's tag, "Otis. It's a pretty name."
"Thank you. Yours is
pretty, as well," Otis replied dutifully.
"Come on. Sit down,"
Jackie offered.
"I can't. It's against
the rules," Otis said and stiffened.
Jackie grinned, rubbed
his chin in thought, and then stared at him. His green eyes were like those of
a kid, too, round and pretty. They widened and moved, and they were very
expressive. And his eyelashes were very curly, Otis noticed. Was that how
Hudson saw him that caused him to call him a kid?
"I have a feeling that
you don't like me too much, Otis."
"That is not true. I like
all our customers the same."
Jackie laughed, and he
didn't seem like he was laughing at Otis, as people usually did. "Ah, straight
through the heart, huh?"
"I don't understand what
you mean," Otis replied, and he was being very sincere. What was happening to
him while looking at this young man who seemed interested in him was very
strange. A few days before, he would have felt happy about it. There was
finally someone interested in him. Could it be that he was starting to become
arrogant because he was waiting tables now and was no longer comfortably hiding
in the back?
Or was it something else
entirely?
"What I mean," Jackie
said and leaned back, hands behind his head, "is that, for some reason, my
usual charm doesn't seem to be working on you."
Otis let his eyes linger
over the taut body underneath the well-cut suit. It had to be a wonderful body,
judging by what he could see of it. However, he needed to make it blatantly
clear, because leading people on was not right. "I'm sorry. It is not your
fault. You're too young for me."
Jackie gave him a
startled look. "For real? If I wasn't sure they don't hire underage people in
this place, I'd say you were like sixteen or so."
"I am twenty-two," Otis
replied, slightly aggravated now. He didn't look that young. He was sure of it.
"And I am twenty-six,"
Jackie said, sounding and looking quite exasperated. "Who are you calling
young?"
They must have started
talking too heatedly, because Missy appeared by their side. "Otis, you may go.
I know you wanted to leave early. I'll take over. Good evening, sir," she said
in a sugary tone, addressing Jackie. "So happy to see you here again."
Otis didn't wait to
listen to any more. He gave a formal farewell and disappeared. He must have
looked that young to Hudson, too. No wonder the man called him a kid. And that
wasn't good.
TBC